Posted by Sir Four at 4:24pm Aug 14 '09The World Health Organization ranked countries' healthcare systems in 2000. How you regard the WHO's rankings is up to you, but I've put in some other information such as healthcare spending as a percentage of total GDP (as of 2005) and the change in spending, 2000-2005:
If you scroll down the list, you'll notice that the US spends the highest on health care at 15.2% (that was 2005..it's closer to 17% spending now). The next-highest country is Switzerland at 11.4%, and most of these countries are under 10%.
Another interesting thing to note is that spending has gone up by some degree in nearly all countries, but none higher than the US.
Most of these countries that rank higher than the US have some form of universal system. They also allow private insurance for those unsatisfied with the national coverage. They each vary in their implementations, and it would probably take weeks of work to do good comparisons (which is why I won't be doing that!), but quickly, I've learned that people buy private insurance in Norway and Spain to shorten wait times, while in Singapore people pay out of pocket to upgrade their care above what the government provides. In Japan, citizens often get insurance through their employer, as in the US, but there is a national plan for the self-employed, unemployed or who otherwise don't have coverage. Insurance is compulsory in Japan, whereas in Singapore health savings accounts are compulsory (to pay for what the government doesn't provide). In Norway, doctors are paid on a salary basis. In Austria, which has a government-run universal system, patients are expected to pay for a portion of their care on a sliding scale based on their income.
Interesting stuff.
| Rank | Country | % of GDP | GDP 5yr Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 11.2 | +1.6 | |
| 2 | Italy | 8.9 | +0.8 | |
| 3 | San Marino | 7.3 | ||
| 4 | Andorra | 6.3 | ||
| 5 | Malta | 8.4 | ||
| 6 | Singapore | 3.5 | +0.1 | |
| 7 | Spain | 8.2 | +1 | |
| 8 | Oman | 2.5 | ||
| 9 | Austria | 10.2 | +0.2 | |
| 10 | Japan | 8.2 | +0.6 | |
| 11 | Norway | 9.1 | +0.7 | |
| 12 | Portugal | 10.2 | +1.4 | |
| 13 | Monaco | 4.6 | ||
| 14 | Greece | 10.1 | +0.8 | |
| 15 | Iceland | 9.4 | +0.1 | |
| 16 | Luxembourg | 7.7 | ||
| 17 | Netherlands | 9.2 | +1.2 | |
| 18 | United Kingdom | 8.2 | +1 | |
| 19 | Ireland | 8.2 | +1.9 | |
| 20 | Switzerland | 11.4 | +0.9 | |
| 21 | Belgium | 9.6 | +0.5 | |
| 22 | Colombia | 7.3 | -0.4 | |
| 23 | Sweden | 9.2 | +1 | |
| 24 | Cyprus | 6.1 | ||
| 25 | Germany | 10.7 | +0.4 | |
| 26 | Saudi Arabia | 3.4 | ||
| 27 | United Arab Emirates | 2.6 | ||
| 28 | Israel | 7.8 | -0.2 | |
| 29 | Morocco | 5.3 | +0.5 | |
| 30 | Canada | 9.8 | +1 | |
| 31 | Finland | 7.5 | +0.9 | |
| 32 | Australia | 8.8 | +0.5 | |
| 33 | Chile | 5.4 | -0.8 | |
| 34 | Denmark | 9.4 | +0.9 | |
| 35 | Dominica | 6.5 | ||
| 36 | Costa Rica | 7.1 | +0.6 | |
| 37 | United States of America | 15.2 | +2 | |
| 38 | Slovenia | 8.5 | +0.1 | |
| 39 | Cuba | 7.6 | +1.4 | |
| 40 | Brunei | 2 |
If you scroll down the list, you'll notice that the US spends the highest on health care at 15.2% (that was 2005..it's closer to 17% spending now). The next-highest country is Switzerland at 11.4%, and most of these countries are under 10%.
Another interesting thing to note is that spending has gone up by some degree in nearly all countries, but none higher than the US.
Most of these countries that rank higher than the US have some form of universal system. They also allow private insurance for those unsatisfied with the national coverage. They each vary in their implementations, and it would probably take weeks of work to do good comparisons (which is why I won't be doing that!), but quickly, I've learned that people buy private insurance in Norway and Spain to shorten wait times, while in Singapore people pay out of pocket to upgrade their care above what the government provides. In Japan, citizens often get insurance through their employer, as in the US, but there is a national plan for the self-employed, unemployed or who otherwise don't have coverage. Insurance is compulsory in Japan, whereas in Singapore health savings accounts are compulsory (to pay for what the government doesn't provide). In Norway, doctors are paid on a salary basis. In Austria, which has a government-run universal system, patients are expected to pay for a portion of their care on a sliding scale based on their income.
Interesting stuff.