per OECD and WB data, each of these countries& #39; public social expenditures as a % of GDP is <= that in the US, but all have achieved levels of absolute and relative poverty comparable to the nordic states& #39;. that got me wondering: how do their spending priorities diverge from ours?
for starters, all but the czech republic spend less as a % of GDP on public pensions than the US does. despite this, all enjoy significantly *lower* rates of poverty among aged adults; the only one that comes close is switzerland, which actually spends more than most of the list.
vitally, all the selected countries spend a *lot* more as a % of GDP on children and families than the US. all but one spend at least 1% of their GDP on child and family cash benefits; the US, conversely, spends only 0.06%. this is starkly reflected in child poverty rates.