Americans' insistence on living to their last possible machine-assisted breath makes healthcare very, very expensive. Something like a third to half of the healthcare costs of an individual are incurred in their last year. Americans are terrified of dying.

This is why I have a hard time taking cost comparisons seriously between the US and Europe - European healthcare systems will pull the plug a lot earlier, saving the money (and the indignity) involved in dying as slowly as possible.

Ironically, doctors in the US have some of the lowest end-of-life care costs, because they know their actual chances and don't seem to be so afraid of dying.