Spending on health and healthcare in most OECD countries has risen dramatically over the past five years. Combined with lower economic growth, the increase in health spending has driven the share of health expenditure as a percentage of GDP up from an average 7.8% in 1997 to 8.5% in 2002. This is in sharp contrast to the period 1992 - 1997, when the share of GDP spent on health remained almost unchanged.
The OECD Health Report 2004 indicates that the main drivers for the increased expenditure are rapid advances in medical technologies, population ageing and higher public expectations. A key feature in the costs are pharmaceuticals, where spending has risen 1.3 times faster per year than total health expenditure.
In spite of a growing awareness of the importance of prevention and public health, OECD countries spent on average only 2.8 percent of total health expenditure on organised public and private prevention programmes.
Overweight and obesity problems, a growing risk factor in OECD countries.
The number of overweight and obese people has increased in all OECD countries. Obesity is a known risk factor for diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory problems (asthma) and musculoskeletal diseases (arthritis). In several OECD countries, more than 50% of adults are now classified as being overweight or obese (body mass index over 25). The United States has the highest rate of adults considered as overweight or obese (with 34% of adults being overweight and another 31% defined as obese in 1999-2000), followed by Mexico, the United Kingdom and Australia.
