Cardiovascular diseases are one of the reasons the U.S. has higher death rates than comparable high-income nations.
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Despite the U.S. spending more on healthcare each year than any other high-income country, the nation's residents have shorter lifespans than people in many peer countries, new research finds.
A significant percentage of the U.S. population has no health insurance, while affordability and a shortage of providers hampers care, a report released in May by the Commonwealth Fund finds.
The annual report evaluated the U.S. health system relative to 19 other high-income countries, focusing on insurance coverage, access to care, affordability and health equity. Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Israel, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand and Switzerland were among the countries also analyzed.
Universal healthcare systems were in place in all countries in the analysis except the U.S. and Mexico. In the U.S., 8% of residents have no health insurance, and in Mexico, 20% are without coverage.
U.S. healthcare affordability for people with insurance was also among the worst of the sampled countries. Twenty-three percent of Americans skipped medical visits, treatments and follow-ups because of cost, double that of Canada, which was second in unaffordability. The Netherlands was among the most affordable, with less than 2% of the population forgoing care because of cost.
U.S. and Mexico also led in premature deaths and were among the developed countries with the shortest life expectancies — 79 years for Americans and 76 years for Mexicans. Life expectancy in Germany was 81 years; Canada, 82; and France, 83.
Poorer health also continues to be a problem in the U.S. A May study in JAMA Network Open found the U.S. had higher death rates in 1999-2022 than 17 other high-income countries. Cardiovascular disease, metabolic diseases, dementia and complications from drug and alcohol were some of the main reasons for the higher rates.
The findings suggest behavioral health factors, such as inactivity and unhealthy diets, combined with lack of access to care and affordable care, play a role in America's excess deaths, the researchers said. Nearly 13 million deaths could have been avoided if U.S. health matched the health of its peers, they estimated.
“Differences in social factors between the U.S. and other (high-income countries) can lead to differences in behavioral risk factors, which in turn can lead to higher risks of specific causes of death,” study lead author Jacob Bor, ScD, associate professor of global health and epidemiology at Boston University School of Public Health, said in a news release.
For more on the Commonwealth Fund report, “U.S. Health Care from a Global Perspective, 2026,” visit www.commonwealthfund.org.
- Copyright The Nation’s Health, American Public Health Association
