Prevention for the Sickest 10 Percent Is Best Treatment Plan for People, Economy

Sunday, 15 April 2012 08:23  
By Jonathan Fleece, Truthout | News Analysis 

Spending on health care in America has skyrocketed over the past 40 years. In 2010, the United States spent an estimated $2.47 trillion on health care. This staggering figure equates to every American spending more than $8,000 on health care. The total spending represented nearly 17.4 percent of the US gross domestic product (GDP). By comparison, in 1980 the share of GDP devoted to health care was only 8.8 percent. This equated to approximately $1,000 per person spending on health care in 1980. In 1970, it was $352 per person. Even when adjusted for inflation this rate of increase in health care spending demonstrates that the US is in the midst of a health care fiscal crisis, and it is getting worse every year.