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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

Is the health care sector less productive than other sectors of the United States economy?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
YES

A literature review by Brookings Institution analysts confirms that the health care sector has "significantly lower productivity growth than the economy as a whole." Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services actuaries found that from 1990 to 2013, productivity growth in the hospital sector averaged between 0.1% and 0.6% per year. In the private (non-farm) business sector, growth averaged 1% per year.

Some analysts argue that health care productivity is increasing in a different sense: i.e., better survival rates, and improved quality of patient life. Medical advances may be more expensive in terms of labor or supplies, but nevertheless are valuable to health care consumers.

According to McKinsey, the health care industry's productivity could be improved by minimizing waste: by optimizing doctors' schedules, for example, or automating some administrative tasks.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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