An economic indicator to show what the United States spends on health care each year. It is usually expressed as a percentage of the gross domestic product (GDP). The NHE is the sum total of all health care expenditures, including physician and hospital services, drugs, home nursing care, eyeglasses, dental services, and so forth, as well as administrative costs, construction, and research. The NHE for 1993 was $940 billion, equal to about 14% of the GDP.