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UK has best health system in developed world, US analysis concludes

BMJ 2017; 358 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j3442 (Published 14 July 2017) Cite this as: BMJ 2017;358:j3442
  1. Anne Gulland
  1. London

The UK’s healthcare system is the best out of 11 of the world’s most developed countries, despite having one of the lowest levels of funding.

The US health think tank the Commonwealth Fund ranked the UK number one, closely followed by Australia, then the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, Germany, Canada, France, and the US.1 This is the second time in a row that the UK has come at the top of the ranking, carried out every three years.2

The US came last, despite spending by far the most on health: 16.6% of its gross domestic product, nearly double that spent by Australia, at 9% the smallest proportion among the 11 countries, and the UK, at 9.9%. The US spent more …

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