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The U.S. Has Fewer Physicians and
Hospital Beds Per Capita Than Italy and Other Countries Overwhelmed by
COVID-19
A
new analysis and chart collection finds that the U.S.
has fewer hospital beds and practicing physicians per capita than many
similarly large and wealthy countries with health care systems already
strained by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Compared
to Italy and Spain, two countries in which hospitals have already been
overwhelmed by an influx of COVID-19 patients, the U.S. has fewer practicing
physicians per capita - 2.6 per 1,000 people, compared to 4.0 in Italy and
3.9 in Spain - but more licensed nurses. While the U.S. has a higher number
of total hospital employees than most comparable countries, nearly half of
that workforce is comprised of non-clinical staff who are not directly
involved in delivering care.
The
U.S. also lags behind comparable countries in hospital beds per capita, with
2.8 hospital beds for every 1,000 people, a capacity similar to that of
Canada and the United Kingdom, but less than other similarly wealthy
countries. Italy, the country with the highest number of COVID-19-related
deaths to date, has 3.2 hospital beds per 1,000 people – only slightly more
than the U.S. South Korea, which has reportedly slowed the rate of new
infection, has 12 beds per 1,000 people. Some data suggest, however, that the
U.S. may have more ICU beds per person than many comparable countries.
The
analysis also includes charts on coverage and affordability barriers that may
limit access to care, as well as the health of at-risk groups. Compared to
other large, wealthy countries, the U.S. has a higher disease burden,
attributable to cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, and
diabetes, all conditions associated with more serious outcomes for COVID-19
patients.
The
chart collection and analysis is part of the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker, an online
information hub dedicated to monitoring and assessing the performance of the
U.S. health system. For more data, analysis, polling and journalism on the
COVID-19 pandemic, visit our special resource page on kff.org.
Filling
the need for trusted information on national health issues, the Kaiser Family Foundation is
a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California.
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Saturday, March 28, 2020
The U.S. Has Fewer Physicians and Hospital Beds Per Capita Than Italy and Other Countries Overwhelmed by COVID-19
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