A new study from the Commonwealth Fund finds that the United States still has the worst health outcomes of all high-income nations despite spending the most on healthcare. The data came from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), covering high-income nations like the Netherlands, Japan, Germany, France, the UK, and others.
According to Victoria Bailey, “While the country spends a substantial amount on healthcare, Americans see the worst health outcomes compared to other high-income countries. Life expectancy at birth in the US was 77 years in 2020, which is three years lower than the OECD average. Additionally, racial disparities are apparent in the country's life expectancies. The average life expectancy in 2019 was 74.8 years for non-Hispanic Black individuals and 71.8 years for non-Hispanic American Indians or Alaska Natives, compared to 78.8 years for non-Hispanic White individuals. The US also had the highest rate of avoidable deaths in 2020, perhaps indicating a lack of timely and effective healthcare interventions. Similarly, the infant and maternal mortality rates were the highest in the US in 2020, at 5.4 infant deaths per 1,000 live births and 24 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births.”
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(Source: RevCycleIntelligence, February 1st, 2023)
