Health care spending are rising rapidly

Health care expenses are rising rapidly. The cost of the health insurances has skyrocketed. Total expenses on health care in 2007 were $2.3 trillion, which is about $7,600 per person. 16 percent of the GDP was formed by the health care spending.

Analysts assume that health care expenses are going to double during the next decade and by the year 2016 people will spend $4.2 trillion annually. It is possible to buy the whole Africa for this kind of money.

In 2007 an employer provided health insurance that offered coverage for the employee and his family of four had an average price of $12,000.

Experts come to a general conclusion that American health care system is burdened with inefficient administrative expenses and the money is not spent for the right purpose. These aspects considerably increase the cost of medical services and insurances.

The United States is one of the most protected countries in the world, and it spends huge amount of financial resources to maintain the defense system, however, in 2016 health care spending will be 4.3 times bigger than national defense expenses.

47 million people are still uninsured, and they don’t live in Zambia, but in the country that shares 33 percent of world economics and spends more on health care than other high-developed countries. In comparison, health care spending accounts for 10 percent of GDP in such European countries as Switzerland and Germany.

The national survey, held in 2007 showed that the main reason, why so many people stayed uninsured was the cost of health insurance coverage which was rising rapidly - they just couldn’t afford to get one.

23 percent of the uninsured respondents mentioned that they had to change their lives radically in order to pay for all the medical bills. 50 percent of all American citizens said that health care is their first problem in their everyday lives.

One out of four Americans said they had troubles paying for their medical treatment. Approximately 30 percent of the respondents said they had to delay doctor visits or even cancel them in the past years, because they didn’t have enough money to pay for them.

Every 30 seconds, one U.S. citizen goes bankrupt after he or she had some health problems. Besides, the quality of insurance plans is questioned too, because 68 % of residents that filed for bankruptcy still had a health insurance plan.

44 percent of people, who took part in the survey, reported that they had to save on food and heating to pay for the medical bills. In the close future even $200,000 of savings will not be enough for an elderly couple to pay for the medical coverage, what’s more, they will probably not manage to pay for the basic medical coverage.

The United States spend over $480 billion more than the European countries every year, but it still doesn’t provide a universal coverage because the health care is raising rapidly.

Government officials are concerned by this tendency and they all agree, the health care costs have to be taken under control. It’s a pity; they all have different views on how to provide this control.