U.S. Medical Research Spending Drops While Asia Makes Gains

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U.S. News and World Report

By: Allie Bidwell

Although the United States once accounted for more than three-quarters of the world's research spending, its share has continued to drop in recent years, while countries in Asia saw a dramatic increase.

In a study published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found the United States comprised 51 percent of global research spending, at $131 billion in 2007. But by 2012, that number dropped to $119 billion, or 45 percent of the world's biomedical research spending. By comparison, Japan and China increased their spending by $9 billion and $6.4 billion, respectively, during the same time. In 2012, Japan and China accounted for 13.8 percent and 3.1 percent of the world's total research spending.