Patients in the United States pay about $5,000 per person on healthcare but are not healthier than people in other countries. In article by The Economist, authors examined exactly where the money goes, and which firms profit the most.
While one explanation to high costs is waste, like patients being prescribed excessive amount of medications, the cost of unnecessary services also pays a role in increased costs. This excess spending is most controversial in rent-seeking by healthcare firms.
Rent-seeking by healthcare is explained as “when companies extract outsize profits relative to the capital they deploy and risks they take.” While these costs do not account for the majority of the healthcare costs in the U.S., they are excessive as healthcare firms make more than $65 billion in profits per year.
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Cara joined TriMed Media in 2016 and is currently a Senior Writer for Clinical Innovation & Technology. Originating from Detroit, Michigan, she holds a Bachelors in Health Communications from Grand Valley State University.