Data about average health-care outcomes tell us little about how our system is functioning. Some have too much and some too little, the author shows.

This paper compares and contrasts the two visions of Social Security's future. Its object is to give readers the background they need to understand the arguments made by the two sides, and thus to follow the debate that promises to enfold at the national level in the next few years -- first...

The nation is ill-prepared to finance the quantum jump in long-term care spending that is on its way as the baby boom ages. By default rather than by design, Medicaid has become the main source of funds for long- term care. But reliance on Medicaid has fostered the institutionalization of the...

This paper examines the features of HMOs and their associated ethical problems. And it points to a framework of needed consumer protection. The problems seem to flow from the very design of HMO medicine. One is prepayment. Every revenue dollar is also potentially a profit dollar when not spent...

The nation is not prepared to deal with the jump in expenditures for long-term care that will come with the aging of the baby boom generation. Only a small part of that care is paid for privately (out-of-pocket or through private insurance). Most is financed through Medicaid, the program that is...

Although President Clinton's health care plan was defeated in Congress, the problems precipitating the plan's introduction still exist or have worsened: medical costs continue to grow faster than the overall economy, more individuals are not covered by insurance, and fiscal austerity threatens...