Americans have the worst health care among wealthy nations People in the United States die the earliest and live the sickest lives They also face the most barriers to obtaining health care, and are battered by paperwork THURSDAY, Sept. 19, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Americans have the worst health care among the world’s wealthy nations, a new report says. People in the United States die the earliest and live the sickest lives out of 10 developed countries, even though the United States spends the most on health care, according to the annual report by health care think-tank The Commonwealth Fund.
Australia, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom rank highest out of the 10 countries included in Mirror, Mirror 2024: A Portrait of the Failing U.S. Health System .
“While other nations have successfully met their populations’ health needs, the U.S. health system continues to lag significantly,” said Reginald Williams II , vice president of international health policy and practice innovations with The Commonwealth Fund.
For the report, researchers compared nations’ health systems based on 70 specific measures across five areas of performance. Other nations measured against the United States included Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, Sweden and Switzerland. The report found that: People in the United States have the shortest lives and the most avoidable deaths, ranking dead last on five out of six health outcome measures Americans face the most barriers to obtaining healt.