Comparing Health Outcomes of Privileged US Citizens With Those of Average Residents of Other Developed Countries

Abstract

The US health care system appears to underperform on nearly every metric. The US spends more than $3.5 trillion per year on health care, 25% more per capita than the next highest-spending country.¹ However, compared with other countries, the US performs poorly on process, outcome, and patient experience metrics, as well as life expectancy. Compared with countries tracked by the Commonwealth Fund, the US ranks behind every country on causes of preventable mortality that could have been addressed by health system interventions.²