Repeating the $6,000 health care lie
President Obama again says the U.S. spends $6,000 more per person on health care than other industrialized nations, when the widest gap is $3,778.
President Obama again quoted made-up figures about health care during a town hall forum hosted by the AARP.
From the White House transcript:
Last point I would make, just to give you a sense of why I know that we can get savings in the system without over the long term spending more money. We spend about $6,000 per person more than any other industrialized nation on Earth — $6,000 more than the people do in Denmark, or France, or Germany, or — every one of these other countries spend at least 50 percent less than we do, and you know what, they’re just as healthy.
Obama used the same numbers during his health care press conference on July 22, after which the OMB told FactCheck.org that the president was referring to the average spending per family. Here the president clearly says, “We spend about $6,000 per person more than any other industrialized nation on Earth.”
From The American Spectator:
If you look at OECD data (which can be downloaded here), you will find the following statistics for per capita health care costs, adjusted for purchasing power parity:
United States: $7,290
Denmark: $3,512
France: $3,601
Germany: $3,588
Obama is correct that all of those countries spend less per person on health care, but it isn’t anywhere near $6,000 less. The widest gap among the countries mentioned, between the U.S. and Denmark, is $3,778 per person.
Sources:
The White House, July 28, 2009
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT IN AN AARP TELE-TOWN HALL ON HEALTH CARE REFORM
The American Spectator, July 28, 2009
