Question: Compare the U.S. healthcare system with the healthcare system of Great Britain, Japan, Germany, or Switzerland; Compare access between the two healthcare systems for children, people who are unemployed, and people who are retired.

Expert answer

There are many similarities and differences between healthcare systems in the United States and other developed countries. In general, the US healthcare system is more expensive than systems in other developed countries, but there are some significant variations in access to care.

One key difference is that the US healthcare system is primarily private, while most other developed countries have a public healthcare system. This means that people in the US are more likely to have health insurance through their employer or purchased individually, while people in other countries are more likely to be covered by a government-sponsored plan.

Another key difference is that the US has a much higher rate of uninsurance than other developed countries. In 2016, about 28 million people in the US were uninsured, compared to just over 5% of the population in Great Britain, Germany, and Japan. This means that people in the US are much more likely to have difficulty accessing care due to lack of insurance.

Children's access to healthcare is also generally better in other developed countries than in the US. In the US, about 8% of children under the age of 18 were uninsured in 2016. In contrast, all children in Great Britain and Japan are automatically enrolled in a public health insurance plan, and coverage is nearly universal in Germany and Switzerland.

People who are unemployed or retired also have better access to healthcare in other developed countries than in the US. In the US, there is no guarantee of health insurance for people who are unemployed, and Medicare, the public health insurance program for people over the age of 65, does not cover all medical costs. In contrast, all unemployed people in Great Britain are eligible for government-sponsored health insurance, and retirees in most other developed countries have access to public health insurance plans that cover a significant portion of their healthcare costs.