(a)What were the total U. S. annual health care costs in 1980, 1990,
and 2000?

(b) Compare the 2000 U. S. health care costs PER CAPITA with Canada,
England, France, Italy, and Japan.

Dear hbekkar,

Here’s the info you requested.  The US info was found at the Center
for Disease Control (CDC) website.  I have listed the total health
care expenditures for 1980, per capita expenses, and health care costs
as a percentage of GDP (all currency is $US):

US Health Care Costs

Year	 Total Expenses ($billion)   Per Capita Expense		% of GDP
1980		$245.8			  $1,067		   8.8
1990		$696.0			  $2,738		  12.0
2000		$1,299.5		  $4,499		  13.2

Sources:
Total Expenses and % of GDP:
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus91acc.pdf

Per Capita:
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/tables/2002/02hus112.pdf

**Note: 2000 Per Capita statistic is from the WHO site mentioned
below.

-----------------

Now here is a comparison of the countries you requested.  The source
for these statistics is the World Health Organization.  I’ve also
included health care costs as a percentage of GDP.  Note that the per
capita column is the “per capita total expenditure on health at
average exchange rate in US dollars”.  The GDP column is the “Total
Expenditure on health as % of GDP”.  Also, note that the World Health
Organization says that these are figures produced with “best available
evidence”.


2000 Health Care Costs

Country		Per Capita Expense    % of GDP		
Canada			2,058		9.1
England (U.K.)		1,747	        7.3
France			2,057		9.5
Italy 			1,498		8.1
Japan			2,908		7.8
United States		4,499		13

Source:
http://www.who.int/whr/2002/whr2002_annex5.pdf

Hope that’s helpful!

---

Clarification of Answer by torq-ga on 23 Jan 2003 21:26 PST

Sorry, the formatting came out slightly off.  Here are the numbers in
a format that may be easier to read!

US Health Care Costs:

1980 
Total Expenses ($billion): $245.8
Per Capita Expense: $1,067
% of GDP: 8.8

1990 
Total Expenses ($billion): $696.0
Per Capita Expense: $2,738
% of GDP:  12.0

2000
Total Expenses ($billion): $1,299.5
Per Capita Expense: $4,499
% of GDP:  13.2

-------------

2000 Health Care Costs – Country Comparison

Per Capita:
Canada: $2,058
England (U.K.): $1,747
France: $2,057
Italy: $1,498
Japan: $2,908
US: $4,499

% of GDP:
Canada: 9.1
England (U.K.): 7.3
France: 9.5
Italy: 8.1
Japan: 7.8
US: 13

Answer and sources given are first rate. Inccluding GDP information
helped reduce the inflation factor in the data.
Excellant response.