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bdw2004

old figs

Living - Work, Debt, Housing, Health, Social System

Location http://www.cs.mun.ca/~ulf/facts/work.html. Written 150104-051204 by Ulf Schünemann.

etc

Ad age: above 65: Japan: 19% (2020: 28%), Germany: 18.9%. [FTD 14 Jan 2005].

Worker's tax wedge [The economist March 19th 2005].
Income tax + mandatory employer and employee social-security contributions as % of total labour cost of average one-earner family with two children.
Ireland ca. 6%

USA ca. 16.5%

Switzerland ca. 17%

Australia ca. 17.5%

UK ca. 18%

NZ ca. 20%

Portugal ca. 22%

Canada ca. 22.5%

Japan ca. 23.5%

Norway ca. 28%

Austria ca. 29%

Denmark ca. 30%

Spain ca. 31.5%

Germany ca. 32.5%

Netherlands ca. 34%

Greece ca. 35%

Belgium ca. 36%

Italy ca. 37%

Finland ca. 37.5%

France ca. 39%

Sweden ca. 41%

Public Retirement Insurance

Public retirement benefit distribution in Germany 2002 [Spiegel Online 2003]

Rate: 19.5% of income. 2005 predicted deficit: 1.5 - 1.7 billion €. Monthly intake 2005 ('04) in billion €: Jan: 13.4 (13.6), Feb: 12.9 (13.1), Mar: 13.6 (13.7) [FTD 2 May 2005]

Private Finances

Private Debt

Average private debt
per capita total
UK 25,680€ [=16,990£] 1,512 billion € [1 trillion £] (80% of it mortgage debt)
USA 25,200€ [=30,300$]
[Spiegel Online 29 July 2004]

[FAS 17 Oct 2004] # over-indebted households (=not enough money to pay of debt despite permanent reduction of living standard) D 1994: 2 mio, 1999: 2.7 mio, 2002: 3.1 mio = 8.1% (East-G: 11.3% (half of them singles; main reason: unemployment) West 7.2% (over-proportionally >=3-person households; reasons: unemployment, separation/divorce, failed selbständigkeit)). Creditors: banks in 70% of cases, versandhandel 42%, telephone companies 27%.

Spiegel 12 Aug 2004 http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/0,1518,312939-2,00.html Auch die private Schuldenlast der Amerikaner hat Rekordhöhen erreicht: 2,04 Billionen Dollar insgesamt. Allein 734,5 Milliarden Dollar davon entfallen auf Kreditkarten. Eine Familie mit mindestens einer Karte ist mit durchschnittlich 8367 Dollar in den Miesen. Die meisten Leute, berichtet die Forschungsstiftung Century Foundation, seien "bis ans Limit gedehnt", viele müssten sich selbst für den alltäglichen Bedarf verschulden: "Krankenversicherung, Bildung, Fahrzeuge, Kinderbetreuung und so weiter".

Health Infrastructure

	health indicators		money spent on health pc.pa. [bdw 4/2005]	infrastructure
	life expectancy m/w [bdw 4/2005]	baby mortality [bdw 4/2005]	money spent on health pc.pa. [bdw 4/2005]	doctors per 1,000 people [Economist, 7 Dec 2002]	MRIs per million people (1999) [Economist, 7 Dec 2002]
Germany	75.5/81.5	?	2820$ ('01) = ca. 11% GDP (see below)	ca. 3.5 ('00)	ca. 5.9
France	75.0/83.0	?	2570$ ('01)	ca. 3.4 ('00)	ca. 3.5
Sweden	76.5/82.0	?	?	ca. 2.9 ('99)	ca. 8.6
Italy	77.0/83.0	?	?	?	?
Japan	78.0/85.0	ca. 0.35%	2130$ = 7.8% GSP ('01)	?	?
USA	74.5/79.5	(Whites:0.7%, Blacks:1.4%)	4900$ = 14.5% GSP ('01) total 1800-2000 bn $ = 14% GSP or 15% GDP (see below)	ca. 2.8 ('99)	ca. 7.6
Australia	77.0/82.5	?	?	ca. 2.5 ('98)	ca. 4.3
Canada	?	?	2060$ ('00)	ca. 2.1 ('00)	ca. 3.7
UK	75.5/80.5	?	1990$ ('00)	ca. 1.8 ('00)	ca. 4.3

US Health Care System

America spent 1800 bn.$ on health = 15% GDP in 2004 [Economist, March 19th 2005], 2000 bn.$ = 14% GSP in 2003 [bdw 4/2005]. Of the pharmaceutical market 550 bn.$ world-wide, the US accounts for more than 40% [Economist, March 19th 2005]. Total expenditure on pharmaceuticals: 1993: 100 bn.$, 2001: 140 bn.$, 2002: 162 bn.$. (largest drug companies: 30% of takings go to marketing, 14% to development [government sponsors 36% of medical research]; eg. Pfizer: 32 billion $ takings + 30% profit). [bdw 4/2005]. Estimated 700m$-worth of pharmaceuticals was reimported from Canada to US. [Economist, March 19th 2005].

Why so much:

400 billion $ goes to admin. because everybody has a different health care package and a doctor gets different fee-for-service from every ensurer (California: 40 billion $ on admin = 30% of total health expenditure). [bdw 4/2005]
Drugs are most expensive in the US. Avg price charged by manufacturers in Canda, UK, Australia is roughly half that in US in 2003 [Economist, March 19th 2005]. Why so much?
- 2004, pharma firms spent 14.7 bn.$ on marketing to health care professionals and at least 3.6 bn.$ on direct-to-consumer advertising. There are 102,000 pharma-salesmen targeting the 870,000 physicians in the US (Pfizer employs >10% of them) [Economist, March 19th 2005]
- Pharmaceutical companies' expenditure on lobbying in US congress: ca. 150 million $ (1999: 90, 2000: 112, '01: 110, '02: 136, '03: 143, Jan-June 2004: 79 mio.$) [FTD 15 June 2005].
Legal trails cost 100 billion $ - 2003: In 8.1% of cases, avg. compensation of 3.1 million $ is payed. (1988: In 1% of cases, avg. 1.25 million $) - makes doctors' legal ensurance rates raise (eg. gynecologist 200,000$ pa) - they get the money back from the health ensurers or patients. [bdw 4/2005]
Medical personel earns well (up to 60% more than in Germany). [bdw 4/2005]
Americans live and eat unhealthy. [bdw 4/2005]
45 million Americans under-65 are not health ensured (California: 40% of under-65 are un-ensured or under-ensured; Texas: 44%) - Emergency rooms of public hospitals take care of them - they cost 22 billion dollars [bdw 4/2005]

Medicare takes care of Americans above 65 years of age [bdw 4/2005]. The Medicare Modernisation Act of 2003 will start covering many outpatient drug costs, so that the gvt will then account for 45% of all drug spending in US [Economist, March 19th 2005].

Medicaid - paying for it consumes roughly 15% of the states' budgets. [Economist, March 19th 2005].

Employers optionally offer health ensurance packages [bdw 4/2005]: - of those who do, 75% offer only ensurance with 1 ensurer (no competition) - cost rose from 1$ ('98) to 1.5$ ('03?) per working hour p.c. - 60% of employees are ensured through their employers.
Eg. GM: For every car sold, 1500$ goes to finance free health insurances for ca. 1 million workers, ex-workers, and their family members [FTD 9 June 2005]

Health & Social System Cost in Germany

Public
care
insurance
(since 1996)

'Social Help' (payed by municipalities)

Public health insurances

Overall health expenditure
= size of health market/industry

generation 50+: fortune / available p.a.

payouts

per capita / total

# receivers

total payouts

per capita / total

%GDP

(of which [for] seniors in need of care [FTD 2 Feb 2005])

1990

72.0 bn.€

1991

194€

1992

222€

2020€
163.2 bn.€

10.1%

1993

253€

1994

254€

(560,000)

1995

267€ (9 bn.€)

(573,000)

124.0 bn.€

1996

256€

(430,000 - start of Care insurance)

1997

241€

(330,000)

2480€
203.9 bn.€

10.9%

1998

247€

(289,000)

1999

249€

(310,000)

2000

254€ (2.87 bn.€)

(325,000)

133.8 bn.€

2001

258€

(335,000)

2002

266€

(315,000)

142.6 bn.€

(larger than car industry)

2840€
234.2 bn.€

11.1%

2003

274€
22.6 bn.€ (3.0 bn.€)

2.8 mio. (323,000)

2.9 bn.€

for comparison: 14 bn.€ tobacco tax

(which year exactly?)

ca. 500 bn.€
ca. 90 bn.€

[Die Welt, 21 Oct 2004]

[Spiegel Online 25 June 2003] - see diagram below

[Die Welt, 13 Oct 2004 - source: Statistisches Bundesamt, dpa]

[bdw 4/2005]

Ad health: 2003, health sector employs 4.2 people (1/9 of employees) [FTD 13 Jan 2005]. 2001, 228,000 people work in seniors' care [FTD 14 Jan 2005].

Ad Care insurance: Jan 2005, 69.8 million people have public Care insurance, 8.9 private Care insurance [FTD 2 May 2005]

Ad Care insurance: 2003: 2.9 bio € payout to 1.34 mio people treated at home + 650,000 people in homes. Deficit 690 mio €. Reserves down to 4.2 bio €. [Welt 4 Nov 2004]

Care and Social Help 2002 [FTD, 2 Feb 2005]: Out of 2 million people in need of care, 650,000 live in homes. 485 mio.€ Social Help goes to cover care at home (a plus of 62 mio.€ = 15% from 2000). Of those in homes, 200,000 (ie. a third) receive a total of 2,458 mio.€, Social Help to cover the costs not covered by Care insurance (a place in a home with full care costs 2,500€ per month, of which the Care insurance covers betw. 400€ and 1432€, dep. on need).

Ad Social Help: The 3% increase from 2002 to '03 is due to an increase by 5.1% to 13.8 bio € support for the disabled and sick. Classical social help, ie. living expenses, decreases by 0.2% to 8.7 bio € (bec. start of base-pension 1.1.2003 at Social Help level)
Regional variation in per capita Social Help: Bremen 609€, Berlin 543, Hamburg 516, Schleswig-Holstein 332, Hessen 327, NRW 315, Niedersachsen 298, Saarland 294, Rheinland-Pfalz 236, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 229, Sachsen-Anhalt 224, Bayern 209, Brandenburg 197, BW 185, Thüringen 179, Sachsen 158€
[Die Welt, 21 Oct 2004]

Public Health Insurance Companies in Germany

Payouts rose from 45.9 bio € in 1980 in West Germany to 142.6 bio € 2002 in reunited Germany [Spiegel Online 25 June 2003]

Deficit/surplus (through changing legal framework), in mio. € [Die Welt 13 Oct 2004 - source: Ministry of Health, Reuters]

1990		-1,500
1992		-4,800
1994	+5,300
1996?		-3,500
1997?	+600
1999?	+300
2000?		-3,000
2002		-2,900
2004 (jan-jul)	+2,400

January to July 2004:
Intake: 69,800 mio € (59,300+10,500 West/East Germany)
Payouts: 68,300 mio € (56,800+11,600 West/East Germany)

Employment and Sickness

Germany: Of officially unemployed, 1/3 are sick. Of employed, exactly 1/3 show muscle-sceleton-deseases, and 28% complain about stress-related problems. Stress at work is responsible for 50% - 60% of all sick days according to the European Agency for Savety and Health Protection at the Workplace [Die Welt, 4 Oct 2004]

Cost of Living

Cost of living incl. rent in selected cities, index: Zürich = 100 [FTD 19 May 2005]

London	122.4
Oslo	109.4
New York	105.0
Tokio	104.6
Copenhagen	104.1
Hongkong	100.6
...
Frankfurt	82.6
Berlin	76.2
Shanghai	63.5
Prag	45.2

Cost of "modest two-bedroom" appartment [Economist, 7 Dec 2002]
San Franciso Boston Washington San Diego Chicago Dallas
Monthly rent 1,362$ 942$ 840$ 805$ 762$ 749
Income needed to make it 'affordable' (ie 30%) 54,480$ 37,680$ 33,600$ 32,200$ 30,480$ 29,960$
Nurses' median income 39,603$ 39,541$ 33,280$ 31,990$ 31,990$ 38,938$
Teachers' median income 38,293$ 38,584$ 32,781$ 38,584$ 36,733$ 34,861$
Obstacles to more affordable housing in US:
1. High-density, high-rise apartment blocks are opposed by neighbours.
2. «[F]ew countries offer such generous tax breaks to home-owners as America does. The Chicago area's population has increased by 11% since 1990 ... but the number of rented homes has dropped by 3%.»
3. «[M]any neighbourhoods are suspicious of anything labeled "affordable housing", often assuming that it means public housing ...»
4. «"Most Americans don't think there's a housing problem"»

	San Franciso	Boston	Washington	San Diego	Chicago	Dallas
Monthly rent	1,362$	942$	840$	805$	762$	749
Income needed to make it 'affordable' (ie 30%)	54,480$	37,680$	33,600$	32,200$	30,480$	29,960$
Nurses' median income	39,603$	39,541$	33,280$	31,990$	31,990$	38,938$
Teachers' median income	38,293$	38,584$	32,781$	38,584$	36,733$	34,861$

Working Hours

Full time jobs: Contractual standard working time per work week in European countries 2003 is between 40-35 hours. From [Zeit 2004/28]:

Full time jobs of German nationals in Germany [Zeit 2004/33]:

contracts define a 38.9/39.8 hour work week (in West/East Germany)
the actual average work week has 42.1 hours (41.9/43 in West/East Germany)
actual weekly hours increased 41.5 (1993) -> 41.9 (2003) in West Germany, 42.9 (1995) -> 43 (2003) in East Germany.
Actual working hours per week in avg. 2.7h more than in the contract. Of this 1.1h financially compensated, 1.1h compensated with time off, 0.5h not compensated.
1/2 of high qualified people, and 1/5 of low qualified, work >40 hours

Employees of German nationality in Germany [Zeit 33/2004]:

Work regularly on Saturdays: 32%, on Sundays: 13%. Work shift often or constantly: 16%.
Part time jobs 16% (1993) -> 26% (2003) in West Germany, 8% (1995) -> 18% (2003) in East Germany.

Total working hours p.a. - development in Germany 1960-2003 [Spiegel Online, Aug 2004]

Productivity

Productivity per working hour 2004 [FTD 21 Jan 2005, Conference Board]

Norway	57.2$
France	51.3$
Ireland (+3.6%)	47.9$
USA (+3.1%)	44.4$
Germany (+1.0%)	43.0$
UK	39.4$
Japan	33.3$
Spain	32.2$
Poland	17.5$
Estonia	11.2$

Lohnstückkosten change to previous year in 2004 (avg. 1961-1990) [FTD 17 May 2005]

UK	+2.1% (+8.2%)
USA	+1,0% (+4.6%)
Germany	-1.1% (+3.9%)

Germany steel industry: tons (metric) produced per worker [FTD 24 Jan 2005]

1960	82
1970	120
1980	150
1990	219
2000	452
2003	474

Income

Minimum wages per month in € [Zeit Aug/2004]

Top-Managers' Income
Eg. DaimlerChrysler over the last 6 years: Board member income increased by 300% while billions were lost: 5 bn. € lost in Chrysler + billions lost in Mitsubishi + 0.5 bn. € on hold for TollCollect system development [Spiegel Online, 19 July 2004]

Ireland	ca. 6%
USA	ca. 16.5%
Switzerland	ca. 17%
Australia	ca. 17.5%
UK	ca. 18%
NZ	ca. 20%
Portugal	ca. 22%
Canada	ca. 22.5%
Japan	ca. 23.5%
Norway	ca. 28%
Austria	ca. 29%
Denmark	ca. 30%
Spain	ca. 31.5%
Germany	ca. 32.5%
Netherlands	ca. 34%
Greece	ca. 35%
Belgium	ca. 36%
Italy	ca. 37%
Finland	ca. 37.5%
France	ca. 39%
Sweden	ca. 41%