In 2024, the United States had the ******* per capita health expenditure among OECD countries. At that time, per capita health expenditure in the U.S. amounted over ******** U.S. dollars, significantly higher than in Switzerland, the country with the ************** per capita health expenditure. Norway, Germany and, the Netherlands are also within the top five countries with the highest per capita health expenditure. The United States also spent the highest share of it’s gross domestic product on health care, with **** percent of its GDP spent on health care services. Health Expenditure in the U.S. The United States is the highest spending country worldwide when it comes to health care. In 2023, total health expenditure in the U.S. came close to **** trillion dollars. Expenditure as a percentage of GDP is projected to increase to approximately ** percent by the year 2033. Distribution of Health Expenditure in the U.S. Health expenditure in the United States is spread out across multiple categories such as nursing home facilities, home health care, and prescription drugs. As of 2023, the majority of health expenditure in the United States was spent on hospital care, accounting for a bit less than *** third of all health spending. Hospital care was followed by spending on physician and clinical services which accounted for ** percent of overall health expenditure.

The public and private per capita health expenditure differs significantly by country. As of 2024, the United States had by far the highest public per capita spending worldwide. Moreover, the U.S. had the second-highest private expenditure on health globally, just after Switzerland. Health expenditures globally Health expenditures include the consumption of health goods, services and public health programs as well as insurance and government spending. Globally, health expenditures are on the rise. Among all countries, the average per capita health expenditure is projected to see an increase of over 30 percent from the 2019 totals by the year 2050. Despite the growing expenditures, there are still countries with relatively low health expenditures. The countries with the lowest governmental health expenditure include South Sudan, Eritrea and Bangladesh. Health expenditures spotlight: the U.S. In 2023 the U.S. national health expenditure was at an all-time high. However, the projections indicate that total health expenditures will increase even more. The per capita health expenditures for the U.S. looked equally grim, with 2023 being the most expensive year for health care on record.

The average for 2021 based on 53 countries was 136.95 U.S. dollars. The highest value was in the Seychelles: 629.12 U.S. dollars and the lowest value was in Somalia: 14.63 U.S. dollars. The indicator is available from 2000 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The United States has the highest expenditure on health care per capita globally. However, the U.S. has an unique way of paying for their health care where a majority of the expenditure falls upon private insurances. In FY 2024, around one ***** of all health expenditure is paid by private insurance. Public insurance programs Medicare and Medicaid accounted for ** and ** percent, respectively, of health expenditure during that same year. U.S. health care system Globally health spending has been increasing among most countries. However, the U.S. has the highest public and private per capita health expenditure among all countries globally, followed by Switzerland. As of 2020, annual health care costs per capita in the United States totaled to over ** thousand U.S. dollars, a significant amount considering the average U.S. personal income is around ** thousand dollars. Out of pocket costs in the U.S. Aside from overall high health care costs for U.S. residents, the total out-of-pocket costs for health care have been on the rise. In recent years, the average per capita out-of-pocket health care payments have exceeded *** thousand dollars. Physician services, dental services and prescription drugs account for the largest proportion of out-of-pocket expenditures for U.S. residents.

Belarus BY: Health Expenditure per Capita data was reported at 450.214 USD in 2014. This records a decrease from the previous number of 465.167 USD for 2013. Belarus BY: Health Expenditure per Capita data is updated yearly, averaging 186.558 USD from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2014, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 465.167 USD in 2013 and a record low of 69.909 USD in 1995. Belarus BY: Health Expenditure per Capita data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Belarus – Table BY.World Bank.WDI: Social: Health Statistics. Total health expenditure is the sum of public and private health expenditures as a ratio of total population. It covers the provision of health services (preventive and curative), family planning activities, nutrition activities, and emergency aid designated for health but does not include provision of water and sanitation. Data are in current U.S. dollars.; ; World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure database (see http://apps.who.int/nha/database for the most recent updates).; Weighted average;

United States US: Health Expenditure per Capita data was reported at 9,402.537 USD in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 8,987.901 USD for 2013. United States US: Health Expenditure per Capita data is updated yearly, averaging 6,555.232 USD from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2014, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 9,402.537 USD in 2014 and a record low of 3,788.310 USD in 1995. United States US: Health Expenditure per Capita data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.World Bank: Health Statistics. Total health expenditure is the sum of public and private health expenditures as a ratio of total population. It covers the provision of health services (preventive and curative), family planning activities, nutrition activities, and emergency aid designated for health but does not include provision of water and sanitation. Data are in current U.S. dollars.; ; World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure database (see http://apps.who.int/nha/database for the most recent updates).; Weighted average;

Context

This indicator calculates the average expenditure on health per person. It contributes to understand the health expenditure relative to the population size facilitating international comparison. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) defines current health spending as:

Health spending measures the final consumption of health care goods and services (i.e. current health expenditure) including personal health care (curative care, rehabilitative care, long-term care, ancillary services and medical goods) and collective services (prevention and public health services as well as health administration), but excluding spending on investments. Health care is financed through a mix of financing arrangements including government spending and compulsory health insurance (“Government/compulsory”) as well as voluntary health insurance and private funds such as households’ out-of-pocket payments, NGOs and private corporations (“Voluntary”). This indicator is presented as a total and by type of financing (“Government/compulsory”, “Voluntary”, “Out-of-pocket”) and is measured as a share of GDP, as a share of total health spending and in USD per capita (using economy-wide PPPs).

OECD (2020), Health spending (indicator). doi: 10.1787/8643de7e-en (Accessed on 19 September 2020)

Cuba CU: Health Expenditure per Capita data was reported at 816.624 USD in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 656.703 USD for 2013. Cuba CU: Health Expenditure per Capita data is updated yearly, averaging 282.439 USD from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2014, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 816.624 USD in 2014 and a record low of 111.845 USD in 1995. Cuba CU: Health Expenditure per Capita data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Cuba – Table CU.World Bank.WDI: Social: Health Statistics. Total health expenditure is the sum of public and private health expenditures as a ratio of total population. It covers the provision of health services (preventive and curative), family planning activities, nutrition activities, and emergency aid designated for health but does not include provision of water and sanitation. Data are in current U.S. dollars.; ; World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure database (see http://apps.who.int/nha/database for the most recent updates).; Weighted average;

In 2021, Singapore had the highest per capita health spending among countries in Southeast Asia, at around 3,970 U.S. dollars. Brunei followed with the health expenditure per capita of around ****** U.S. dollars of that year.

Costa Rica CR: Health Expenditure per Capita data was reported at 970.002 USD in 2014. This records a decrease from the previous number of 990.348 USD for 2013. Costa Rica CR: Health Expenditure per Capita data is updated yearly, averaging 361.065 USD from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2014, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 990.348 USD in 2013 and a record low of 217.315 USD in 1995. Costa Rica CR: Health Expenditure per Capita data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Costa Rica – Table CR.World Bank.WDI: Social: Health Statistics. Total health expenditure is the sum of public and private health expenditures as a ratio of total population. It covers the provision of health services (preventive and curative), family planning activities, nutrition activities, and emergency aid designated for health but does not include provision of water and sanitation. Data are in current U.S. dollars.; ; World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure database (see http://apps.who.int/nha/database for the most recent updates).; Weighted average;

In 2023, the total healthcare expenditure per capita was approximately ******* U.S. dollars. Followed by Norway, which spent ******* U.S. dollars per capita.

Ecuador EC: Health Expenditure per Capita data was reported at 579.192 USD in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 439.562 USD for 2013. Ecuador EC: Health Expenditure per Capita data is updated yearly, averaging 172.938 USD from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2014, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 579.192 USD in 2014 and a record low of 49.009 USD in 2000. Ecuador EC: Health Expenditure per Capita data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ecuador – Table EC.World Bank: Health Statistics. Total health expenditure is the sum of public and private health expenditures as a ratio of total population. It covers the provision of health services (preventive and curative), family planning activities, nutrition activities, and emergency aid designated for health but does not include provision of water and sanitation. Data are in current U.S. dollars.; ; World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure database (see http://apps.who.int/nha/database for the most recent updates).; Weighted average;

Albania Health Expenditure per Capita data was reported at 272.204 USD in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 253.342 USD for 2013. Albania Health Expenditure per Capita data is updated yearly, averaging 159.745 USD from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2014, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 272.204 USD in 2014 and a record low of 51.484 USD in 1995. Albania Health Expenditure per Capita data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Albania – Table AL.World Bank.WDI: Social: Health Statistics. Total health expenditure is the sum of public and private health expenditures as a ratio of total population. It covers the provision of health services (preventive and curative), family planning activities, nutrition activities, and emergency aid designated for health but does not include provision of water and sanitation. Data are in current U.S. dollars.; ; World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure database (see http://apps.who.int/nha/database for the most recent updates).; Weighted average;

This horizontal bar chart displays health expenditure per capita (current US$) by countries yearly using the aggregation average, weighted by population in Kiribati. The data is filtered where the date is 2021. The data is about countries per year.

This horizontal bar chart displays health expenditure per capita (current US$) by countries yearly using the aggregation average, weighted by population in Ireland. The data is filtered where the date is 2021. The data is about countries per year.

China Consumption Expenditure per Capita: Health Care and Medical Services data was reported at 2,547.000 RMB in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 2,460.000 RMB for 2023. China Consumption Expenditure per Capita: Health Care and Medical Services data is updated yearly, averaging 743.700 RMB from Dec 1998 (Median) to 2024, with 27 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2,547.000 RMB in 2024 and a record low of 173.200 RMB in 2000. China Consumption Expenditure per Capita: Health Care and Medical Services data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Household Survey – Table CN.HD: Expenditure per Capita.

This horizontal bar chart displays health expenditure per capita (current US$) by countries yearly using the aggregation average, weighted by population in Liberia. The data is about countries per year.

Quantifies the economic resources dedicated to health functions, excluding capital investment. Concerns primarily healthcare goods and services consumed by residents, irrespective of where that consumption takes place or who is paying for it. Data are collected according to SHA2011 methodology.

Health care expenditure quantifies the economic resources dedicated to health functions, excluding capital investment. Health care expenditure covers health care goods and services that are consumed by resident units, irrespective of where that consumption takes place (it may be in the rest of the world) or who is paying for it. As such, exports of health care goods and services (to non-resident units) are excluded, whereas imports of health care goods and services for final use are included.

Health care expenditure data provide information on expenditure broken down by function category (e.g. services of curative care, rehabilitative care, clinical laboratory, patient transport, prescribed medicines), provider category (e.g. hospitals, general practitioners) and financing scheme (e.g. social security, private insurance company, household). These categories form the 3 core classifications of the System of Health Accounts.

The complementary classification for the revenues broken down by health care financing schemes is also disseminated by Eurostat.

Per capita national health expenditures in the United States have increased significantly since 1960. In 2023, national health expenditures amounted to **** thousand U.S. dollars per capita. For comparison, in 1960, per capital expenditures for health stood at *** U.S. dollars. According to recent data, the U.S. has some of the highest health care costs in the world. Health care expenditures With increased per capita health expenditures, U.S. health care expenditures as a percentage of the gross domestic product (GDP) have also increased over the decades. Among developed countries, the U.S. has the highest health expenditure as a proportion of the GDP. The high level of health costs in the U.S. may be attributable to high costs for prescribed drugs and health services as well as high administrative costs. Cost areas A large proportion of all health care spending in the U.S. is attributable to hospital care and physician and clinical services. In recent years, many sectors have seen an increase in health care spending. However, data suggests that prescription drugs have seen some of the most dramatic increases in spending in recent years. The annual prescription drug expenditures in the U.S. reached an all-time high by the end of 2022.