Category: Uncategorized

Congratulations to Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson for the 2020 Nobel Prize in Economics. Below is an excerpt from the press release. Using auction theory, researchers try to understand the outcomes of different rules for bidding and final prices, the auction format. The analysis is difficult, because bidders behave strategically, based on the available information. They…

From the Nobel Prize website: Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna have discovered one of gene technology’s sharpest tools: the CRISPR/Cas9 genetic scissors. Using these, researchers can change the DNA of animals, plants and microorganisms with extremely high precision. This technology has had a revolutionary impact on the life sciences, is contributing to new cancer…

The cost-effectiveness of trained service dogs for PTSD. Health care use of transgender individuals. COVID, mortality and race. COVID + Flu. New HEOR blog.

Shirley Svorny and Michael Cannon of the Cato Institute have a long history (see here) of criticizing government licensing of physicians and other health care providers (e.g., nurse practitioners [NPs], nurses). Their proposed alternative has been to allow private entities to certify the competence of practitioners. They claim that private entities would increase competition by…

In the news, we often hear of pharma companies dramatically raising the price of off-patent but sole-sourced drugs. For instance, Martin Shkreli–formerly of Turing pharmaceuticals–raised the price of Daraprim, an antiparasitic drug, from $13.50 to $750 per pill. Is this a common occurrence or is the news media blowing it out of proportion? A recent…

Kamala Harris on health. COVID data quality. African-American views on US health policy. Impact of treatment advances on lung cancer mortality. Trends in deaths of despair.

In theory, single payer systems are the best approach to deal with existential threats or pandemics. The strengths of single-payer, top-down approaches are that having most funds–and potentially most workers–within a single entity can lower coordination cost and lead to a more effective response. The key drawback of single payer, top-down systems is they typically…

Talking to kids about coronavirus. FDA on RWE.  Should pharmacists be able to order labs? Health policy econometrics: DiD vs. SC vs. IFE vs. GSC COVID-19 for startups.

Access to care in rural areas is often a problem. Some studies have found that rural residents are less likely to seek preventive care such as vaccinations in part due to the need to travel long distances to get primary care. Even if rural residents do access their primary care physician (PCP), however, are they…