Global Healthcare
In a world of developing technologies and a rapidly growing population, disparities in healthcare accessibility and quality between countries are very evident. According to the World Health Organization (24), over half of the world population is unable to receive the essential healthcare they require. Along with this, over 10% of the world population spends at least a tenth of their household budgets to pay for healthcare. Because having access to healthcare can be a matter of life or death, we argue that countries with less accessible and quality healthcare are less free than those with high accessibility and quality. Also, due to the fact that healthcare can be so costly to those who require it, there can be a decrease in freedom as the costs of healthcare rise due to the fact that sick individuals are bogged down with debt and a lack of funds available for everyday spending. By looking at a country's healthcare expenditure per capita and comparing it to life expectancy, this page attempts to assess the correlation, if any, between expensive healthcare and longer, higher quality lives, thereby increasing their freedom.
Healthcare Expenditure Per Capita by Country
Figure 1: This map displays the 2014 data for national healthcare expenditure per capita in international dollars around the world (24). Hover over a country to view its expenditure per capita. Countries with no data are shown in gray. For a narrated video of the map, visit the Information tab.
This map shows expenditures ranging from Intl$25 in Central African Republic to Intl$9,507 in the United States of America. Looking at the shading of the map reveals a trend of higher spending in more developed countries, such as Canada at Intl$4,613, Australia at Intl$4,493, and Norway at Intl$6,193. While the U.S. has the highest national expenditure per capita on healthcare, it is interesting to note that the second highest value goes to Swizerland, at only Intl$7,636. Considering that the United States had a population of 318.6 million in 2014 (23), this almost Intl$2,000 gap amounts to much more than just a couple thousand international dollars. Interestingly, though the United States spends by far the most on healthcare per capita, this high value is not reflected in quality of life for Americans. Conversely, the life expectancy is actually lower (as seen below) and the prevalence of chronic conditions higher than its developed counterparts (5). Moving on to the lightly shaded countries, the general trend is that if a country is not European or North American, its national expenditure per capita on healthcare tends to remain below Intl$2,000. This is true of every Asian country except Japan and Saudi Arabia, every African country, every South American country, and every Central American and Caribbean country except Cuba. Curiously, though these countries spend much less than European countries, the United States, and Canada, life expectancies in some of these regions are very similar to those of the big spenders (as seen below). |
Life Expectancy by Country
Figure 2: This map displays the 2016 life expectancies in years for males and females by country (6). Hover over a country to view its life expectancy. Countries with no data are shown in gray. For a narrated video of the map, visit the Information tab.
This map shows national life expectancy of males and females around the world, ranging from 51.84 years in Sierra Leone to 90.00 years in Andorra. While life expectancies around the world range from around 50 years to 90 years, the frequency of intermediate-level life expectancies is much higher than the extremes. In the range from 50.00- 59.99 years, there are only 15 countries. In the range from 60.00-69.99 years, there are 48 countries. In the range from 70.00-79.99 years, there are 87 countries, or nearly half of all the countries with data on this map. From 80.00-89.99 years, there are 28 countries, with Andorra the lone country with a life expectancy above 89.99 years. Intriguingly, though the United States by far spends the most on healthcare per capita (as seen above), the national life expectancy is only 79.3 years, ranking it as only the 34th highest life expectancy, beaten out by countries including Chile, Lebanon, and Hungary, countries that spend less than Intl$2,000 per capita on healthcare. Judging by this data, it is clear to see that higher life expectancies, representative of better healthcare and a higher quality of life, are not brought about by increased spending on healthcare per capita.
This map shows national life expectancy of males and females around the world, ranging from 51.84 years in Sierra Leone to 90.00 years in Andorra. While life expectancies around the world range from around 50 years to 90 years, the frequency of intermediate-level life expectancies is much higher than the extremes. In the range from 50.00- 59.99 years, there are only 15 countries. In the range from 60.00-69.99 years, there are 48 countries. In the range from 70.00-79.99 years, there are 87 countries, or nearly half of all the countries with data on this map. From 80.00-89.99 years, there are 28 countries, with Andorra the lone country with a life expectancy above 89.99 years. Intriguingly, though the United States by far spends the most on healthcare per capita (as seen above), the national life expectancy is only 79.3 years, ranking it as only the 34th highest life expectancy, beaten out by countries including Chile, Lebanon, and Hungary, countries that spend less than Intl$2,000 per capita on healthcare. Judging by this data, it is clear to see that higher life expectancies, representative of better healthcare and a higher quality of life, are not brought about by increased spending on healthcare per capita.