Question
1. (1) The United States spends a higher proportion of its income on health care than any other country. (2) Americans now spend about $1.5 trillion on health care. (3) Health expenditures are one of the largest single components of America’s economy, accounting for one-seventh (14 percent) of the Gross Domestic Product. (4) Canada, France, and Germany provide universal health care coverage for their citizens but spend only 8 to 11 percent of their GDPs on health care, and Britain and Japan spend only 8 percent for universal coverage. (5) In America, health costs are increasing faster than any other good or service we purchase. (6) Americans spent $1,313 per person on health care in 1970; by 2002, the cost grew to $5,449. (7) In 1970, we spent a mere 7 percent of our GDP on health care. (8) Today, we spend almost 14 percent of our GDP on health services. (9) Clearly, American health care does not come cheap.
