Unbiased Analysis of Today's Healthcare Issues
Why do people, like myself, go through the grueling, boring, masochistic process of obtaining an Economics PhD. Well, according to Paul Kedrosky (“Self help“) getting a PhD can help you discover what you really like to do. …what I found out when doing my thesis — and something I noticed in pretty much everyone I…
This is the question posed by a 2007 NBER working paper by Mary Beth Landrum, Kate A. Stewart, David M. Cutler. The authors use data from the National Long Term Care Survey (NLTCS) between 1994 and 1999. The data is panel in nature and has the benefit of combining Medicare administrative data with survey responses.…
The latest edition of the Cavalcade of Risk is up at the Health Affairs blog.
Joe Paduda of Managed Care Matters reports (“Economy improves…“) that despite a growing economy and a decreasing poverty rate, the number of Americans without health insurance is growing. Approximately 47 million Americans do not have health insurance.
There have been some interesting economics blog postings in recent weeks about the theory of the second best. Dani Rodrik of Harvard argues (“Why do economists disagree“) that economists can generally be viewed as first-best economists and second best economists. For instance, first-best economists would claim that all healthcare should be privately financed, with a…
Here are two interesting articles from the blog-o-sphere: Cat Bonds The NY Times has an interesting article about catastrophic risk (“In Nature’s Casino“). The article talks about how individuals such as John Seo and Karen Clark have helped to create a market for cat bonds. The problem with catastrophes is that insurance companies have not…
A recent press release from the California Speaks organization shows that California residents want change. Eighty two percent of the 3,500 person conversation help August 11th believed that the health care system required change. How should the system be changed? Well, that’s another story. Only 16% of individuals support a single payer system under any…
While almost all economists will argue that a single payer health care system is inefficient, many economists support the idea on redistributive ground. Taxing the young and healthy–either directly through taxes or by forcing them to buy non-actuarially fair insurance–and giving the money to pay for the medical care for the old and sick seems…
Its not a great time to be a political dissident in Russia. Larisa Arap, who openly supported Gary Kasparov’s opposition group the United Civil Front, has just emerged from a 46-day imprisonment in two Russian psychiatric hospitals. The Independent reports (“Putin critic…“) that Mrs. Arap was forcibly interned with numerous unknown pills forced down her…
The latest edition of the Health Wonk Review has been posted at the Medical Humanities Blog.