“Can we do better than the airlines?” That was the provocative question asked by Matthew O. Hurford, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Community Care Behavioral Health (CCBH) and Vice President of Behavioral Health at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Insurance Services, at the 2025 OPEN MINDS Executive Leadership Retreat, during his session, Collective Impact In Behavioral Health: Lessons From The Airline Industry.

Given the data, the answer is “not yet.” The U.S. spends more per capita on health care than any other country—at 17.6% of GDP in 2023 (see International Comparison Of Health Systems). But the U.S. also has poorer outcomes in areas like maternal health and post-operative complications. And…