By Ralph Daily - Flickr: Belgian Waffle, CC BY 2.0, Link

Since U.S. healthcare is in the news, let’s compare it to one of our friends across the pond, mighty, mighty Belgium!

Cost

Belgium spends 11.04% of its GDP on healthcare, vs. 16.57% in the U.S.

Healthcare expenditure by gdp of country

2007 cost of knee replacement in Brussels, Belgium - $13,660

2007 cost in the U.S. - implant alone, $13,000 + hospital fee of $65,000 + surgeon’s fee of ??…

So for that knee replacement, it would be $13,660 in Belgium, vs. an unknown dollar amount over $100,000 in the U.S. Mind you this is the cash price if you pay it out of pocket at a private hospital in Belgium, vs. a “sticker price” that no one (with health insurance) would pay in the U.S. But here’s the thing; no one pays that price in Belgium, either! As they have universal health insurance.

“Belgium pays for health care through a mandatory national insurance plan, which requires contributions from employers and workers and pays for 80 percent of each treatment. Except for the poor, patients are generally responsible for the remaining 20 percent of charges, and many get private insurance to cover that portion.” Medical tourism to Belgium, New York Times

Outcome

Belgium has the “lowest surgical infection rates in the world — lower than in the United States — and is known for good doctors. While most Belgian physicians and hospitals are in business for themselves, the government sets pricing and limits profits.” New York Times

Belgian life expectancy at birth was 82.3 years in 2023, versus 77.5 for U.S. in 2022. Life expectancy in Belgium

How can Belgium offer better outcomes at a much better price?

“Belgium has a universal healthcare system, which is composed of three parts: first, there is a primarily publicly-funded healthcare and social security service run by the federal government, which organizes and regulates healthcare; independent private/public practitioners, university/semi-private hospitals and care institutions.” Healthcare in Belgium