Time-Varying Difference-in-Difference

One research question of interest is the effect of the ACA’s Medicaid expansion on health outcomes.  One way to look at these outcomes would be to do a difference in difference analysis.  Suppose states implemented the Medicaid expansion in 2012.  We could then compare the change in health outcomes for people in states where the…

CrowdMed

Last week, I had an interview with Jared Heyman, Founder of the CrowdMed website. What is CrowdMed? Here is the website in the firm’s own words CrowdMed (www.crowdmed.com) is harnessing “the wisdom of crowds” to help solve the world’s most difficult medical cases quickly and accurately. On CrowdMed, a patient with an undiagnosed medical condition can post…

I’d rather have HIV than diabetes

This is what a provocative article in the Spectator concludes. A recent large epidemiological study showed that, for those diagnosed with HIV now, life expectancy is similar to someone who does not have the virus. The medical profession now considers HIV a chronic disease; it’s regarded in public health terms in the same category as,…

How much should you bet?

This is an interesting question to ask.  If you are going to the casino, in most cases, the answer is $0.  The odds are stacked against you.  But what if the odds are in your favor, or you believe that your own predicted probability of winning differs from that of the bet? The easy answer…