In every international ranking of healthcare quality, the United States is low, from twenty-eighth to thirty-seventh place. Until the 1980s too, life expectancies for people in all the rich countries were increasing right in line, but now people in the other countries live three to five years longer on average than Americans.*2 According to the health-efficiency index compiled by Bloomberg News, which combines longevity and healthcare spending into a single metric for almost every country, the United States is second from the bottom, better only than Bulgaria.
