Oslo, Norway — The Storting, the supreme legislature of Norway, today enacted sweeping health care reforms that will make the land of the midnight sun the latest industrialized nation to scrap its government-run health care systems in favor of an American-style private sector-based health care system.

“As I’ve often said, the United States enjoys the world’s finest health care,” said U.S. Rep. Michele Bachman (R-MN).  “And the ultimate proof of that fact is that so many other industrialized nations with government-run health care are copying America’s proven private sector approach.”

While Bachmann and other advocates of the American health care system tout the efficiency of the United States’ private sector health insurance companies and health care providers, a 2012 analysis by the non-profit Commonwealth Fund notes that the the United States spends more on health care than 12 other industrialized countries, nearly $8,000 per person.  For instance, the analysis finds that the U.S. spends 12 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on health care, while Japan spends just 9 percent. Continue reading →