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United States
GDP per capita has exceeded the average of the upper half of OECD countries by 10% or more over the
past few decades. Per capita output has begun to recover thanks to employment growth offsetting
disappointing productivity growth.
Income inequality remains higher than the OECD average, but has been declining recently. Greenhouse
gas emissions remain among the highest compared to other OECD countries.
Significant progress was made on reforming corporate income taxation in 2017. On other priorities progress
has been more modest.
Public infrastructure provision is insufficient and is contributing to congestion, urban sprawl, and
environmental degradation, making actions to maintain existing and build new infrastructure desirable.
Sizeable segments of the population lack opportunities to acquire and maintain skills valued by employers
and find employment. These gaps could be bridged by measures to improve educational outcomes, facilitate
retraining, and enhance employment flexibility for parents of young children. The US devotes more resources
on healthcare than other OECD countries, with little apparent gain in health outcomes. Enhancing healthcare
sector efficiency could put resources to better use. The burden of regulation, occupational licensing and
zoning hinders the business environment and creates barriers to workers moving jobs.

Growth performance, inequality and environment indicators: United States

A. Growth C. GDP per capita is among
Average annual growth rates (%) 2002-08 2012-18 the highest in the OECD
GDP per capita 1.5 1.6 Gap to the upper half of OECD countries5
Labour utilisation -0.4 0.8 Per cent
20
of which: Labour force participation rate -0.1 -0.1
Employment rate1 0.0 0.7
GDP per capita GDP per hour worked
Employment coefficient2 -0.3 0.2
Labour productivity 1.7 0.6
of which: Capital deepening 0.6 0.0 15
Total factor productivity 1.1 0.6
Dependency ratio 0.2 0.1

B. Inequality and environment

10
Annual variation
Level
(percentage points)
2016 2013-16
Gini coefficient3 39.1 (31.7)* -0.2 (0)*
Share of national disposable income held by the poorest 20% 5.3 (7.6)* 0 (0)* 5
Average of levels
2016 2010-16
GHG emissions per capita4 (tonnes of CO2 equivalent) 17.9 (10.9)* 18.8 (11.3)*
GHG emissions per unit of GDP4 (kg of CO2 equivalent per USD) 0.3 (0.3)* 0.4 (0.3)* 0
Share in global GHG emissions4 (%) 12.9 13.6
* OECD simple average (weighted average for emissions data)

Source: Panel A: OECD, Economic Outlook Database; Panel B: OECD, Income Distribution and National Accounts Databases; United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Database and International Energy Agency (IEA), Energy Database; Panel C: OECD,
National Accounts and Productivity Databases.
StatLink 2 https://doi.org/10.1787/888933955465
260 

Policy indicators: United States

A. Student performance is disappointing B. Health expenditure is very high

Average of PISA scores in mathematics, science and Percentage of GDP, 2017
reading, 2015

525 20

500
15

475
10
450

5
425

400 0
UNITED Advanced EU Canada UNITED Advanced EU
STATES economies STATES economies

Source: Panel A: OECD, PISA Database; Panel B: OECD, Health Database.

StatLink 2 https://doi.org/10.1787/888933956339

Beyond GDP per capita: United States

A. Inequality has decreased but remains higher

than in other advanced economies
Gini coefficient, 2016 or last available year¹
SVK, 24.1 UNITED STATES, 39.1 ZAF, 63.0

Advanced economies median, 29.7 Emerging economies median, 46.2

B. Exposure to fine particulate matter is low

Percentage of population exposed to PM2.5, 20172

UNITED STATES

Advanced < 10 μg/m³

economies
10-35 μg/m³
Emerging
economies > 35 μg/m³

World

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Source: Panel A: OECD, Income Distribution Database, World Bank, World Development Indicators Database and China National Bureau of
Statistics; Panel B: OECD, Environment Database.

Note: For the explanation of the sets of indicators above, please go to the metadata annex at the end of this chapter.
StatLink 2 https://doi.org/10.1787/
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United States: Going for Growth 2019 priorities

Improve, maintain and rationalise infrastructure. Public infrastructure provision is not keeping pace
with the evolving economy and the poor co-ordination of decisions across jurisdictions is contributing to
congestion, urban sprawl, and environmental degradation.
 Actions taken: No action taken. Plans have been announced to boost public spending and
encourage private spending on infrastructure, although the legislative details and associated
appropriations have not been developed.
 Recommendations: Boost investment in, and maintenance of, infrastructure. Promote mass
transit, and use federal programmes to encourage co-ordination across state and local
jurisdictions. Implement user fees based upon distance travelled and congestion, to help fund
transportation and to encourage users to internalise the broader costs of congestion, emissions
such as carbon and particulate matter, and pavement damage. Expand federal programmes
designed to improve access to fixed broadband.
Strengthen active labour market policies. Some displaced workers no longer possess skills that are in
high demand by employers and are likely to suffer long bouts of unemployment or exit the labour market.
 Actions taken: No action taken. The Department of Labor is working to expand the use of
apprenticeships.
 Recommendations: Expand funding for reskilling, building on programmes that, in the past, have
shown effectiveness in facilitating reemployment.
Improve equality of opportunity and strengthen outcomes in education. Some segments of the
population – including children from poor families, females with young children, and persons with criminal
records – still lack opportunities to acquire skills valued highly by employers and to sustain employment.
 Actions taken: Under the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act, peer reviews of
plans developed by State education agencies in 2017 are underway.
 Recommendations: Use targeted federal funding to reduce disparities in student opportunities
and encourage States to be ambitious in lifting educational attainment. Require paid parental leave
and improve access to quality childcare to help reduce wage gaps and improve career prospects.
Expand earned income tax credits. Reduce pre-screening for employment to increase the
employability of those with criminal records.
Improve the efficiency of the health care sector. The US devotes a much larger share of its resources
to healthcare than other OECD countries, and these resources can be used more productively.
 Actions taken: In 2017 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has taken steps to increase
competition in the market for prescription drugs and facilitate entry of low-cost alternatives.
 Recommendations: Continue to conduct pilot programmes of Medicare provider payment
systems, utilise research by the Patient-Centered Outcome Research Institute and others that
compares the effectiveness of different prescription drugs and treatments. Ensure that cost-saving
measures thus identified are rolled out, and monitor their impact. Monitor developments in the
increase of coverage.
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*
Reduce the burden of regulation, zoning and licencing. Regulatory burdens and federal, state and
local government restrictions hinder the business environment.
 Recommendations: Privatise state-owned utilities and transport authorities. Ease restrictions in
services trade. Encourage state and local governments to deregulate occupational licensing and
recognise credentials granted in other states. Use seed money to encourage states and localities
to remove zoning restrictions or move to multi-use zoning.

*
New policy priorities identified in Going for Growth 2019 (with respect to Going for Growth 2017). No
action can be reported for new priorities.