Healthcare spending accounts for some 16 percent of the GDP--a staggering number that is expected to grow as aging baby boomers require more expensive care. But some economists think that having a healthcare-driven economy isn't as bad as it sounds because people are spending the money on life instead of luxury goods. A paper recently published in The Quarterly Journal of Economics put it this way: "As we get older and richer, which is more valuable: a third car, yet another television, more clothing--or an extra year of life?" Economists admit that this isn't an excuse to waste money on unnecessary or overpriced care.
For more on the positive side of healthcare spending:
- read this New York Times article