GDP merely counts monetary transactions regardless of whether they are good, harmful, or necessary, so it is often a better measure of cost than benefit — like judging a car's health by spending at the mechanic; rising medical costs, war, pollution cleanup, and disaster recovery all raise GDP while well-being falls, and US healthcare already consumes 22-23% of GDP, with real wealth (clean air, ecosystems, family time, mental health, trust) uncounted.