US healthcare priciest in the world, with huge gap between cost and quality, research reveals

Despite being the most expensive in the world, US healthcare lags behind many European and Asian countries in terms of quality of services, a study by a top medical magazine says.

A paper published by the Lancet reveals that in 2019, the US was among the nations with “large gaps” between the estimated effectiveness of universal healthcare coverage (UHC) and the levels of pooled healthcare spending.

This puts America in the same basket with countries such as Saudi Arabia, the Central African Republic, Lesotho, and Turkmenistan. US healthcare is the costliest in the world (around $9,000 per person annually) and logic suggests that it should also be among the best. But that’s not the case, according to the survey.

The research reveals that, in terms of quality, it is surpassed by at least two dozen European and Asian countries, as well as Canada. In Japan, which topped the quality chart, costs were more than two times less than in the US.  

American overspending on healthcare is a well-known problem, with the prices of drugs and hospital services much higher than in other countries. Doctors are also paid more than their colleagues abroad, while the government allocates huge sums of money to administrating medical services.

And it’s taking a heavy toll on the patients. In America, the only industrialized country that doesn’t have universal coverage for all citizens, two thirds of people who file bankruptcy cite medical issues as the reason.
Medical bills drain dry around 530,000 American families every year, according to a 2019 survey.