US Now 28th Place in Global Social Progress Index, Joining Brazil, Hungary in Worse-Off Nations

Photo of New York by Monika Kozub on Unsplash

Only 3 countries covered by the global Social Progress Index are worse off now than when it was launched in 2011. The 3 countries are America, Brazil and Hungary.

The index tracks quality of life in 163 countries, looking at 50 well-being metrics -- such as access to health care, education, nutrition, safety, the environment and freedom.

In 2011 America placed 19th in the world, which is really bad for the USA. It's not the only index to place us far down the list. But now America has fallen from 19th place to 28th place -- the so-called greatest country in the world -- for SOME, I would say.

The growing income in disparity in America -- well-researched by other think tanks -- really confirms the dual societies living in the US. Also, our women's rights ratings have plummeted -- no matter what Trump says. The new Women's Economic Forum report will be out in October. It will show a continued downward slide under the Trump administration that is very, very concerning. And that's pre-COVID, so goddess-knows where women are headed in this country.

Related: ‘We’re No. 28! And Dropping!’ by Nicolas Kristof | New York Times

“The data paint an alarming picture of the state of our nation, and we hope it will be a call to action,” Michael Porter, a Harvard Business School professor and the chair of the advisory panel for the Social Progress Index, told me. “It’s like we’re a developing country.”

In a series of confounding contradictions, the United States ranks No. 1 in the world in quality of universities, but No. 91 in access to quality basic education. Then juxtapose the fact that the U.S. leads the world in medical technology, but we rank No. 97 in access to quality health care.

6 Facts About Economic Inequality in the U.S. PEW Research

Income inequality in the U.S. is the highest of all the G7 nations, according to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. To compare income inequality across countries, the OECD uses the Gini coefficient, a commonly used measure ranging from 0, or perfect equality, to 1, or complete inequality. In 2017, the U.S. had a Gini coefficient of 0.434. In the other G7 nations, the Gini ranged from 0.326 in France to 0.392 in the UK.

Globally, the Gini ranges from lows of about 0.25 in some Eastern European countries to highs of 0.5 to 0.6 in countries in southern Africa, according to World Bank estimates.