U.S. health care costly, lacks quality

In comparison to 12 other industrialized nations, the United States spends the most on health care but lacks in overall quality, a report concludes.

The Commonwealth Fund used data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to determine that the U.S. spent about $8,000 on health care per person in 2009, according to Politico.com. Norway and Switzerland spent roughly two-thirds that amount per person, while Japan and New Zealand spent about one-third. The report’s primary author, David Squires, wrote that the “U.S. health-care system is variable and not notably superior to the far less expensive systems in the other study countries.”

The report concluded the discrepancy is due to high prices for medications and medical services, use of expensive technologies, a high obesity rate and widespread overuse of costly surgeries.