| Peer-Reviewed

Healthcare Spending on the Quality of the Nation’s Health: An Analysis of Public Perceptions

Received: 15 October 2018     Accepted: 26 October 2018     Published: 21 December 2018
Views:       Downloads:
Abstract

This study evaluated the public’s perception of how increasing levels of GDP spending on healthcare impact average life expectancy, according to a representative sample of adults in the United States. Statistical analyses correlated the responses with selected demographic variables. The results show that the sample placed greater importance on advances in healthcare than on public health efforts for explaining improved life expectancy over the past century. The sample perceived that increased spending on healthcare through 100% of GDP would continue to promote higher life expectancy. As to why life expectancy has improved, 72% of men and 68% of women (p = 0.0004) attributed it to healthcare. The second most common reason given was lifestyle (10%), followed by diet (9%), education (2%), sanitation (2%), and other (6%). A positive linear relationship was observed between percent of GDP spent on healthcare and perceived life expectancy for all education groups, but the estimated slope showing the relationship decreased with increasing education. In addition, estimated life expectancy when 0% of the GDP was spent on healthcare increased from 30.4 for those with some high school to 40.4 for those with some college, to 45.8 for those with a college degree, to 48.8 for those with a doctoral or professional degree. With greater importance placed on healthcare than public health, over spending on healthcare as opposed to public health will likely result in declining health outcomes and life expectancy in the future.

Published in World Journal of Public Health (Volume 3, Issue 4)
DOI 10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14
Page(s) 125-130
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2018. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

GDP, Healthcare Spending, Life Expectancy, Public Health

References
[1] The World Bank. Life expectancy at birth, total (years). Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN.
[2] Ten Great Public Health Achievements – United States, 1900-1999. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. 1999; 48(12): 241-243.
[3] Bunker JP, Frazier HS, Mosteller F. Improving health: Measuring effects of medical care. The Millbank Quarterly. 1994; 72(2): 225-258.
[4] Mishra S. Does modern medicine increase life-expectancy: Quest for the Moon Rabbit? Indian Heart Journal. 2016; 68(1): 19-27.
[5] Arias E, Rostron BL, Tejada-Vera B. United States Life Tables, 2005. National Vital Statistics Reports. 2010; 58(10): 1-132.
[6] Kochanek KD, Murphy SL, Xu J, Arias E. Mortality in the United States, 2016. NCHS Data Brief. 2017; 293: 1-8.
[7] OECD (2018), "Health expenditure and financing: Health expenditure indicators", OECD Health Statistics (database). Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1787/data-00349-en.
[8] Bradley EH, Elkins BR, Herrin J, Ebel B. Health and social services expenditures: associations with health outcomes. BMJ Quality & Safety. 2011; 20: 826-831.
[9] Bradley EH, Sipsma H, Taylor LA. American health care paradox—high spending on health care and poor health. QJM: An International Journal of Medicine. 2017; 110(2): 61-65.
[10] Survey Sampling International, 2012.
[11] Lindsay GB, Merrill RM, Hedin RJ. The contribution of public health and improved social conditions to increased life expectancy: An analysis of public awareness. Journal of Community Medicine & Health Education. 2014; 4: 311.
[12] Determinants of Health: What Makes Canadians Healthy or Unhealthy? Public Health Agency of Canada. Retrieved from https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/health-promotion/population-health/what-determines-health/what-makes-canadians-healthy-unhealthy.html#unhealthy.
[13] Anderson GF, Chalkidou K. Spending on medical care: More is better? Journal of the American Medical Association. 2008; 299(20): 2444-2445.
[14] Ehreth J. The global value of vaccination. Vaccine. 2003; 21(7): 596-600.
[15] Adam T, Lim SS, Mehta S, Bhutta ZA, Fogstad H, Mathai M, Zupan J, Darmstadt GL. Cost effectiveness analysis of strategies for maternal and neonatal health in developing countries. British Medical Journal. 2005; 331(7525): 1107. doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7525.1107.
[16] Schoder J, Zweifel P. Flat-of-the-curve medicine: A new perspective on the production of health. Health Economics Review. 2011; 1: 2.
[17] Rauh VA, Landrigan PJ, Claudio L. Housing and health: Intersection of poverty and environmental exposures. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 2008; 1136(1): 276-288.
[18] Anderson LM, Shinn C, Fullilove MT, Scrimshaw SC, Fielding JE, Normand J, Carande-Kulis VG. The effectiveness of early childhood development programs: A systematic review. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2003; 24(3): 32-46.
[19] Singh S, Darroch JE, Ashford LS, Vlassoff M. Adding it up: The costs and benefits of investing in family planning and maternal and new born health. Guttmacher Institute. Retrieved from http://library.nhrc.org.np:8080/nhrc/bitstream/handle/123456789/90/591.pdf?sequence=1.
[20] Sallis JF, Frank LD, Saelens BE, Kraft MK. Active transportation and physical activity: Opportunities for collaboration on transportation and public health research. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice. 2004; 38(4): 249-268.
[21] Woodcock J, Edwards P, et al. Public health benefits of strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions: Urban Land Transport. The Lancet. 2009; 374(9705): 1930-1943.
[22] Elvik R. The safety value of guard rails and crash cushions: A meta-analysis of evidence from evaluation studies. Accident Analysis & Prevention. 1995; 27(4): 523-549.
[23] Winters KC, Stinchfield RD, Opland E, Weller C, Latimer WW. The effectiveness of the Minnesota model approach in the treatment of adolescent drug abusers. Addiction. 2000; 95(4): 601-612.
[24] Bayer-Oglesby L, Grize L, Gassner M, Takken-Sahli K, Sennhauser FH, Neu U, Schindler C, Braun-Fahrlander C. Decline of ambient air pollution levels and improved respiratory health in Swiss children. Environmental Health Perspectives. 2005; 113(11): 1632-1637.
[25] Solinge H. Health change in retirement: A longitudinal study among older workers in the Netherlands. Research on Aging. 2007; 29(3): 225-256.
[26] Gump BB, Matthews KA. Are vacations good for your health? The 9-year mortality experience after the multiple risk factor intervention trial. Psychometric Medicine. 2000; 62(5): 608-612.
[27] Pereira D, Hachler P, Achim E. Recovery experiences during vacation and their association with job stressors and health. Psychological Writings. 2017; 10(1): 13-30.
[28] Sallis JF, Johnson MF, Calfas KJ, Caparosa S, Nichols JF. Assessing perceived physical environmental variables that may influence physical activity. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport. 1997; 68(4): 345-351.
[29] Humpel N, Owen N, Leslie E. Environmental factors associated with adults’ participation in physical activity: A review. American Journal of Preventative Medicine. 2002; 22(3): 188-189.
[30] Prince M, Patel V, Saxena S, Maj M, Maselko J, Phillips MR, Rahman A. No Health without Mental Health. The Lancet. 2007; 370(9590): 806.
[31] Kaur C, Kapoor HC. Antioxidants in Fruits and Vegetables: The millennium’s health. International Journal of Food Science & Technology. 2001; 36(7): 703-725.
[32] Cutler DM, Lleras-Muney A. Education and health: Evaluating theories and evidence. National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w12352.pdf.
[33] Parthasarathy P, Dailey D, Young ME, Lam C, Pies C. Building economic security today: Making the health-wealth connection in Contra Costa county’s maternal and child health programs. Maternal & Child Health Journal. 2014; 18(2): 396-404.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Ray Martell Merrill, Gordon Bangerter Lindsay, Chelsi Alexander. (2018). Healthcare Spending on the Quality of the Nation’s Health: An Analysis of Public Perceptions. World Journal of Public Health, 3(4), 125-130. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14

    Copy | Download

    ACS Style

    Ray Martell Merrill; Gordon Bangerter Lindsay; Chelsi Alexander. Healthcare Spending on the Quality of the Nation’s Health: An Analysis of Public Perceptions. World J. Public Health 2018, 3(4), 125-130. doi: 10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14

    Copy | Download

    AMA Style

    Ray Martell Merrill, Gordon Bangerter Lindsay, Chelsi Alexander. Healthcare Spending on the Quality of the Nation’s Health: An Analysis of Public Perceptions. World J Public Health. 2018;3(4):125-130. doi: 10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14

    Copy | Download

  • @article{10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14,
      author = {Ray Martell Merrill and Gordon Bangerter Lindsay and Chelsi Alexander},
      title = {Healthcare Spending on the Quality of the Nation’s Health: An Analysis of Public Perceptions},
      journal = {World Journal of Public Health},
      volume = {3},
      number = {4},
      pages = {125-130},
      doi = {10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.wjph.20180304.14},
      abstract = {This study evaluated the public’s perception of how increasing levels of GDP spending on healthcare impact average life expectancy, according to a representative sample of adults in the United States. Statistical analyses correlated the responses with selected demographic variables. The results show that the sample placed greater importance on advances in healthcare than on public health efforts for explaining improved life expectancy over the past century. The sample perceived that increased spending on healthcare through 100% of GDP would continue to promote higher life expectancy. As to why life expectancy has improved, 72% of men and 68% of women (p = 0.0004) attributed it to healthcare. The second most common reason given was lifestyle (10%), followed by diet (9%), education (2%), sanitation (2%), and other (6%). A positive linear relationship was observed between percent of GDP spent on healthcare and perceived life expectancy for all education groups, but the estimated slope showing the relationship decreased with increasing education. In addition, estimated life expectancy when 0% of the GDP was spent on healthcare increased from 30.4 for those with some high school to 40.4 for those with some college, to 45.8 for those with a college degree, to 48.8 for those with a doctoral or professional degree. With greater importance placed on healthcare than public health, over spending on healthcare as opposed to public health will likely result in declining health outcomes and life expectancy in the future.},
     year = {2018}
    }
    

    Copy | Download

  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Healthcare Spending on the Quality of the Nation’s Health: An Analysis of Public Perceptions
    AU  - Ray Martell Merrill
    AU  - Gordon Bangerter Lindsay
    AU  - Chelsi Alexander
    Y1  - 2018/12/21
    PY  - 2018
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14
    DO  - 10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14
    T2  - World Journal of Public Health
    JF  - World Journal of Public Health
    JO  - World Journal of Public Health
    SP  - 125
    EP  - 130
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2637-6059
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjph.20180304.14
    AB  - This study evaluated the public’s perception of how increasing levels of GDP spending on healthcare impact average life expectancy, according to a representative sample of adults in the United States. Statistical analyses correlated the responses with selected demographic variables. The results show that the sample placed greater importance on advances in healthcare than on public health efforts for explaining improved life expectancy over the past century. The sample perceived that increased spending on healthcare through 100% of GDP would continue to promote higher life expectancy. As to why life expectancy has improved, 72% of men and 68% of women (p = 0.0004) attributed it to healthcare. The second most common reason given was lifestyle (10%), followed by diet (9%), education (2%), sanitation (2%), and other (6%). A positive linear relationship was observed between percent of GDP spent on healthcare and perceived life expectancy for all education groups, but the estimated slope showing the relationship decreased with increasing education. In addition, estimated life expectancy when 0% of the GDP was spent on healthcare increased from 30.4 for those with some high school to 40.4 for those with some college, to 45.8 for those with a college degree, to 48.8 for those with a doctoral or professional degree. With greater importance placed on healthcare than public health, over spending on healthcare as opposed to public health will likely result in declining health outcomes and life expectancy in the future.
    VL  - 3
    IS  - 4
    ER  - 

    Copy | Download

Author Information
  • College of Life Sciences, Department of Health Science, Brigham Young University, Provo, USA

  • College of Life Sciences, Department of Health Science, Brigham Young University, Provo, USA

  • College of Life Sciences, Department of Health Science, Brigham Young University, Provo, USA

  • Sections