Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Voters care a lot about drug prices, but they’re not the main reason the U.S. spends so much on health care.
The big picture: The U.S. spends twice as much per person as other wealthy nations, according to a new Peterson-Kaiser Tracker analysis — and hospitals and outpatient care are the primary culprits.
By the numbers: The U.S. spent $10,637 per capita on health care in 2018. Comparable countries spent $5,527.
- The overwhelming majority of the difference — 76% of it — came from spending on inpatient and outpatient care — not drugs, which get more attention but represent just 10% of the difference.
Why it matters: Cutting hospital spending is hard to do without causing real pain, and that has made it politically risky, as well.
- A public option, like that proposed by Joe Biden, would put pressure on hospital prices. The intensity of that pressure would depend on the plan’s payment level and how many people it covers, which would affect its purchasing power.
- A single-payer health plan would have even more leverage, though universal coverage — not price controls — is usually its supporters’ primary focus.
- The hospital industry led the lobbying effort that killed a public option in the Affordable Care Act, and spent millions in the Democratic primaries this year advertising against Medicare for All.
What we're watching: President Trump has set out new price transparency rules for hospitals, though its likely impact on costs is unclear and the industry has challenged it in court.
Go deeper: