Insurance Markets and Advantageous Selection

Adverse selection is often seen as a major impediment to the efficient functioning of insurance markets. Rothschild and Stiglitz (1976) create a model where high risk people buy full insurance while low risk individuals buy partial insurance. Yet empirically, one finds that in some insurance markets, low risk individuals purchase more insurance than high risk…

Kaiser Online

The Sacramento Business Journal has an interesting article (“Better communication…“) on Kaiser Permanente’s online system for patients called “KP HealthConnect.”  The system allows patients to schedule appointments, refill prescriptions, view lab results and email doctors.

Flat Tax – Part II

Earlier this month, I wrote about how the flat tax has been gaining popularity in Russia and Eastern Europe.  It seems that businesses like the flat tax as well. The Cato-at-Liberty blog notes (“…Losing Business to Flat Tax Neighbors…“) that many businesses are leaving ‘high tax-Hungary’ for its flat tax neighbors.  According to a Budapest…

2008 State of the Union

In President Bush’s 2008 State of the Union address, health care issues were mentioned, but did not play a prominent role.  Whitehouse.gov has the full State of the Union transcript. State of the Union: Summary of Healthcare Issues Addressed Bush reiterated his earlier reform proposals to end the tax deductibility of employer-provided health insurance and…

Do political parties matter?

What happens when your the government is run by those tax-and-spend, dovish, universal health care loving, welfare promoting big government Democrats? Is there a difference when the low tax, hawkish, drug company pawns, anti-equality, small government Republicans take over? Few would question that there are significant ideological differences between the two parties and that federal…

Patents in India

The enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR) in less developed countries is currently a topic of much public debate. Whether it is protecting the copyrights of Western recording artists or preventing `copycat’ technology goods, OECD countries are attempting to compel less developed countries (LDCs) to enforce IPR in their country. No area of IPR enforcement…

Too few US adults get their shots

Reuters reports (“Too few…“) on the problem that U.S. adults not receiving necessary vaccines. “Only 2 percent of U.S. adults last year got a shot that can protect them from painful bouts of shingles, health officials said on Wednesday in a study that shows what they call unacceptably low rates of adult vaccination against a…