Health Care Affordability in the United States, From Crisis to Action: A Presidential Advisory From the American Heart Association.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Organizational presidential advisory and expert consensus framework (level 5 by design analogy).
PubMed 42059068 · doi:10.1161/CIR.0000000000001442
What was done
The American Heart Association developed a Presidential Advisory examining US healthcare affordability. The advisory synthesized qualitative input from interviews and listening sessions with key stakeholders—including patients, clinicians, payers, employers, health system leaders, and public health experts—to formulate a practical framework for action.
What was found
In 2024, US national health expenditures totalled $5.3 trillion, or $15,474 per person, accounting for 18.0% of the US economy. Spending drivers included high prices for services, drugs, and devices; administrative complexity; underinvestment in prevention, primary care, and public health; and chronic conditions. The Advisory proposed 5 core principles: ensuring care access without financial hardship, minimizing cost sharing for high-value services, creating shared system accountability, investing in workforce and data infrastructure, and addressing structural social factors.
Why it matters
The advisory provides a structured framework from a major cardiovascular organization highlighting structural and policy drivers of medical debt, underinsurance, and healthcare costs in the United States.
Limits
This document is a narrative policy statement and expert advisory rather than an empirical trial or systematic review. The abstract does not report the number or selection methodology of participants in the interviews and listening sessions, nor does it quantify the expected impact of the proposed policy recommendations.
Cited by
- supports The United States spends $13,000 per person on healthcare.