Unbiased Analysis of Today's Healthcare Issues
The answer is ‘yes’ according to a paper by French (2023):. The authors use data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) as well as high-frequency returns data for the S&P 500. The study finds that: …a one standard deviation increase in cumulative [negative wealth] shocks over two years increases the probability of elevated blood…
Getting sick creates risk over two dimensions. First, you risk getting sick which of course decreases your utility. Second, getting sick impacts you financially as (i) medical procedures are often expensive and (ii) if you can’t work due to your illness your income may fall. With respect to financial risk, health insurance may provide a…
In a world with COVID-19, what factors are most influential to a company’s stock price? Are company specific or macroeconomic factors most important? It turns out, the speed of health care innovation in fighting COVID-19 may be the biggest single factor influencing all stock market prices. Barrons: General Electric stock was racing higher Tuesday, but…
Why did the financial crisis occur? One reason may be due to too much institutional diversification. George Sugihara explains how even when individual institutions diversify, system-wide risk can increase exponentially. “Leading up to the crash, there was a marked increase in homogeneity among institutions, both in their revenue-generating strategies as well as in their risk-management strategies, thus…
Here’s how the killing of Osama Bin Laden may affect: Stock markets. Share prices rise. Commodity markets. Oil prices fall. Election markets. Obama to get re-elected? Artists’ First Response. A Bin Laden folk song? Healthcare Economist’s Receipt of Spam. I’ve received an above average number of unsolicited emails today regarding how Bin Laden’s death will affect…
Why would that be the case? The answer is risk. Poor people (especially in developing countries) have a larger share of their assets at risk due to theft, a family illness, or funeral. Thus, cash flow management is vital for survival for the poor. The Enlightened Economist discusses a book called Portfolios of the Poor…