Americans Have Terrible Health but Believe They’re in Great Shape
Americans Have Terrible Health but Believe They’re in Great Shape
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an intergovernmental economic organization with 38 member countries, including the United States.
The OECD was founded in 1961 to boost economic progress and world trade. It’s a forum where governments can compare policy experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify good practices, and coordinate domestic and international policies of its members.
The OECD publishes many studies of life in its member countries, including detailed reports about health and longevity. See how the U.S. compares, as well as how Americans rate their own health.
Longest Lifespan: Japan
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These countries had better life expectancy than Americans:
Croatia, Colombia, Estonia, Czech Republic, China, Turkey, Greece, United Kingdom, Slovenia, Costa Rica, Germany, Chile, Austria, the Netherlands, Portugal, Denmark, Canada, Finland, Belgium, New Zealand, Ireland, France, Israel, Luxembourg, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Spain, Australia, South Korea, Switzerland, Japan.
➤ Learn more about moving to Japan
Fewest COVID-19 Deaths: Norway
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These countries all reported fewer COVID deaths than the U.S.:
Chile, Belgium, Brazil, UK, Poland, Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, France, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Sweden, Estonia, Germany, Costa Rica, South Africa, Ireland, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Finland, Israel, Denmark, the Netherlands, Canada, Turkey, Australia, South Korea, Indonesia, Iceland, Japan, New Zealand, India, and Norway.
➤ Learn more about moving to Norway
Fewest Deaths from Heart Disease: South Korea
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These countries reported fewer deaths from heart disease than the U.S.:
Ireland, Austria, New Zealand, Germany, Brazil, Greece, Sweden, UK, Iceland, Canada, South Africa, Italy, Norway, Argentina, Slovenia, Australia, Switzerland, Costa Rica, Israel, Chile, Portugal, Belgium. Denmark, Spain, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, France, Japan, South Korea.
➤ Learn more about moving to South Korea
Lowest Cancer-Related Deaths: Mexico
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These countries had fewer cancer-related deaths than the U.S.:
Chile, Finland, Brazil, Israel, Argentina, Japan, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Colombia, Costa Rica, South Korea, Peru, Turkey, Mexico.
➤ Learn more about moving to Mexico
Best Maternal Mortality: Norway
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These countries had fewer maternal mortality deaths than the U.S.:
Latvia, Turkey, Hungary, Chile, Portugal, Canada, Romania, UK, Lithuania, Finland, South Korea, France, Greece, Switzerland, Bulgaria, New Zealand, Luxembourg, Austria, Estonia, Ireland, Croatia, Slovakia, Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Slovenia, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Japan, Spain, Czech Republic, Australia, Iceland, Israel, Poland, Norway.
➤ Learn more about moving to Norway
Fewest Heavy Drinkers: Turkey
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These countries had fewer heavy drinking adults than the U.S.:
Slovenia, Czech Republic, France, New Zealand, Sweden, the Netherlands, Poland, Brazil, Norway, Croatia, Lithuania, Austria, Switzerland, Portugal, Latvia, Estonia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Spain, Greece, Italy, Turkey.
Fewest Opioid-Related Deaths: Brazil
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These countries had fewer opioid-related deaths than the U.S.:
Estonia, Canada, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, Norway, UK, Ireland, Denmark, Iceland, Australia, Latvia, Switzerland, Greece, Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, Croatia, Belgium, Slovenia, France, Spain, Czech Republic, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, Hungary, Israel, India, Poland, China, Turkey, Portugal, Chile, Slovakia, Japan, Indonesia, Costa Rica, South Africa, Mexico, Peru, South Korea, Argentina, Colombia, Brazil.
➤ Learn more about moving to Brazil
Fewest Obese People: South Korea
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These countries reported fewer obese people than the U.S.:
Chile, Romania, Croatia, UK, Finland, Iceland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Brazil, Greece, Poland, Slovenia, Turkey, Ireland, Canada, Lithuania, Israel, Portugal, Germany, Estonia, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Austria, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Australia, Italy, France, Switzerland, South Korea.
➤ Learn more about moving to South Korea
Most Satisfied With Healthcare: Switzerland
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These countries reported higher satisfaction with the availability of quality healthcare:
Japan, Czech Republic, South Korea, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium, Switzerland.
➤ Learn more about moving to Switzerland
Highest Government Contribution for Healthcare: Czech Republic
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These countries’ governments covered a greater proportion of citizen healthcare costs than the U.S.:
Brazil, Greece, South Korea, Chile, Portugal, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Israel, Lithuania, Latvia, Spain, Australia, Hungary, Poland, Canada, Slovenia, Italy, Estonia, Ireland, Belgium, Romania, Austria, Slovakia, Finland, UK, Iceland, France, Japan, the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Croatia, Norway, Sweden, Luxembourg, Czech Republic.
➤ Learn more about moving to Czech Republic
Lowest Healthcare Costs: Turkey
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These countries have lower healthcare costs than the U.S.:
Norway, Australia, Ireland, Sweden, Luxembourg, Finland, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, UK, Costa Rica, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Germany, New Zealand, France, Slovenia, Japan, Portugal, Greece, Mexico, Estonia, Latvia, Chile, Slovakia, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Colombia, Turkey.
Lowest Rates of Dementia: India
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These countries have lower rates of dementia than the U.S.:
The Netherlands, Norway, Canada, Denmark, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Slovakia, Iceland, Luxembourg, Ireland, South Korea, Argentina, Israel, Chile, Turkey, China, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, Mexico, South Africa, Indonesia, India.
Most Long-Term Care Coverage: Lithuania
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These countries have more seniors receiving affordable, accessible long-term care than the U.S.:
Portugal, Japan, Ireland, Slovakia, Canada, France, Estonia, South Korea, Hungary, Slovenia, New Zealand, Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium, Finland, Australia, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, Israel, Lithuania.
➤ Learn more about moving to Lithuania
But Americans Think They’re Healthy
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The U.S. is outmatched by dozens of other countries showing better healthcare, longer lives, and less illness. But how does the U.S. population see it?
Ironically, Americans ranked 3rd out of the 38 OECD countries in describing their health as “good.” We came in 4th for how many people describe their health as “bad.” Are we fooling ourselves into thinking the U.S. is the best, even when it isn’t? Who knows? Maybe denial, not laughter, is really the best medicine. Source
14 Countries with Better Healthcare Than the United States
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In some cases, countries have much better outcomes than the United States, and in others, countries have marginally worse outcomes but much more affordable, accessible care. Learn about 14 countries with better healthcare than the US where you can immigrate.
➤ 14 Countries with Better Healthcare Than the United States
The 20 Best Countries for Americans To Move To, Based on Data
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The Expatsi Test is an assessment tool for Americans who want to leave the United States. It asks the regions they’d like to move to, their budget, the kind of visa they might apply for (like retirement, digital nomad, or skilled worker) and their preferences for things like safety, healthcare, infrastructure, weather, geographical features, and personal freedoms, and reveals the top 10 countries that best meet their needs.
Based on 37,546 respondents in 2023, here are the top 20 countries for American emigrants.
➤ The 20 Best Countries for Americans To Move To, Based on Data
Americans in Mexico Are Happier With Their Healthcare. Here’s Why
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Whether they’re full-time expats or medical tourists, Americans are much happier with the healthcare they receive in Mexico.
According to FarHomes.com, 84% of American expats rate Mexican healthcare as very good or excellent, compared to 72% of non-emigrant Americans who say the healthcare they receive at home is good or excellent.
Here are some of the reasons Americans would rather get care south of the border.
Brett Andrews is the co-founder of Expatsi, a company that helps expats discover how to leave the U.S. Brett and his partner Jen developed the Expatsi Test to recommend countries to move to, based on factors like budget, visa type, spoken languages, healthcare rankings, and more. In a former life, he worked as a software developer, IT support specialist, and college educator. When he's not working, Brett loves watching comic book movies and reading unusual books.
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Brett Andrews is the co-founder of Expatsi, a company that helps expats discover how to leave the U.S. Brett and his partner Jen developed the Expatsi Test to recommend countries to move to, based on factors like budget, visa type, spoken languages, healthcare rankings, and more. In a former life, he worked as a software developer, IT support specialist, and college educator. When he's not working, Brett loves watching comic book movies and reading unusual books.