[Joseph_E._Stiglitz,_Carl_E._Walsh]_Economics(Bookos.org) (1)

Internet Connection
POLICY ANALYSIS
Washington, D.C., is home to many research groups that focus
on government programs and policies. Among the better
known are the Brookings Institution (www.brookings.org), the
American Enterprise Institute (www.aei.org), and the Urban
Institute (www.urban.org). These institutions post on their
Web sites research and policy pieces dealing with major publicsector
issues and debates. Some, like the American Enterprise
Institute, are associated with conservative views. Others, such
as the Brookings Institution, tend to be associated with more
liberal views. In any case, the best of these institutions
provide thoughtful and careful analyses of major economic
policy issues.
shortages in Canada are likely to occur. Such shortages are particularly likely if U.S.
manufacturers carry out their threat to stop shipping to Canadian pharmacies that
sell to the United States.
Reformers cite four major tasks that remain on the health care agenda:
1. Reducing the number of uninsured Americans, particularly through
programs targeted at the unemployed and at children.
2. Containing the soaring costs of health care in ways that are socially acceptable.
In many countries, health care benefits are rationed to contain costs; that is,
government programs provide assistance only to some of those who need it.
For example, those over eighty-five years old may not be eligible for a hip
replacement or must wait until all those who are younger and need the
surgery get it.
3. Developing programs for nursing home care; today, many of the elderly
must rely on Medicaid, the government program for low-income elderly, for
long-term care.
4. Promoting healthy habits (e.g., better diet and more exercise), while discouraging
activities such as smoking that are known to cause disease. Medical
care is only one factor affecting health, and perhaps not the most important.
Expenditures in broader areas of living and the environment may more effectively
improve health status in general than increased spending targeted at
medical care.
400 ∂ CHAPTER 17 THE PUBLIC SECTOR