Assessing the Performance of the U.S. Health System

Health spending growth has consistently outpaced U.S. economic growth and is higher than medical spending in other wealthy countries. Despite spending more, the United States doesn’t have better health outcome in terms of life expectancy, mortality rates and other measures. This brief provides an overview of trends in health costs and the performance of the U.S. health system, including comparisons to countries from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The brief charts growth in the nation’s per capita health spending along with the recent slowdown, touching on the roles of expanded Medicaid eligibility, increases in Medicare beneficiaries and the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Additionally, it discusses the health system’s effectiveness and capacity to provide services, including the accessibility and affordability of care.

The brief also introduces the Peterson-Kaiser System Tracker, an initiative of the Peterson Center on Healthcare and the Kaiser Family Foundation, and outlines its approach to gathering and synthesizing the latest research in these areas. The Tracker is an online information hub dedicated to monitoring and assessing the performance of the U.S. health system.

Read the brief on the Peterson-Kaiser System Tracker site.