Fairness in drug prices: do economists think differently from the public?

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-29
Author(s):  
Antonio J. Trujillo ◽  
Taruja Karmarkar ◽  
Caleb Alexander ◽  
William Padula ◽  
Jeremy Greene ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Pharmaceutical Research ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Research ◽  
National Bureau ◽  
The Public ◽  
Drug Prices ◽  
Entitlement Theory ◽  
The Government

AbstractUsing dual-entitlement theory as the guide, we conducted a survey of economists from the National Bureau of Economic Research asking them a series of questions about the fairness of drug prices in the United States. Public opinion surveys have repeatedly shown that the public perceives drug prices to be unfair, but economists trained in laws of supply and demand may have different perceptions. Three hundred and ten senior economists responded to our survey. Forty-five percent agreed that drug prices were unfair when people, specifically low-income individuals, could not afford their prescription medications. Sixty-five percent oppose a dollar threshold, or upper limit, on drug prices. The economists recommend the most promising policy change would be to provide the government additional negotiating power and price controls would moderately impact investment in pharmaceutical research and development.

scholarly journals Global Economic Crisis: Impact on Higher Education in Malaysia

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramli Hassan ◽  
Mohammad Haji Alias
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Food Prices ◽  
Economic Research ◽  
Success Factor ◽  
National Bureau ◽  
Global Economic Crisis ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

The global economy is reeling from the effects of financial crisis which led to an economic crisis triggered by the United States sub-prime mortgage crisis which started in late 2007. The sharp inflation in petroleum and food prices in the first half of 2008 also compounded the problem. The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) had declared that the US economy had been in recession since December 2007. Contraction in the growth rates of major developed economies thereby causing global trade in goods and services to plummet has affected open economies including Malaysia. Last year Malaysian GDP grew by about 4.6% over 2007. An ominous sign that economic growth in 2009 would be low or even negative was the 0.1% growth in GDP in the fourth quarter of 2008 compared to the same quarter in 2007. This was due mainly to a 40% drop in net exports. The slow down in growth has affected all sectors of the economy. Education in general and higher education in particular are not spared. Higher education has to compete for scarce public funds. The main objective of this paper is to understand the impact of the global economic crisis on higher education in Malaysia. A better understanding is imperative in order to prepare for the challenges ahead. The challenges ahead are within the framework of the new economic model being formulated by the government in order to lift Malaysia into a high income country within a decade. A major critical success factor is the implementation of an effective human capital development strategy.   Keywords: Economic crisis; higher education; recession.

Verán ustedes las chozas más humildes. El discurso de pobreza en la diplomacia pública cardenista dirigida a Estados Unidos

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-281
Author(s):  
Sylvia Dümmer Scheel
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
New Deal ◽  
Public Diplomacy ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Government ◽  
Lazaro Cardenas ◽  
The New Deal

El artículo analiza la diplomacia pública del gobierno de Lázaro Cárdenas centrándose en su opción por publicitar la pobreza nacional en el extranjero, especialmente en Estados Unidos. Se plantea que se trató de una estrategia inédita, que accedió a poner en riesgo el “prestigio nacional” con el fin de justificar ante la opinión pública estadounidense la necesidad de implementar las reformas contenidas en el Plan Sexenal. Aprovechando la inusual empatía hacia los pobres en tiempos del New Deal, se construyó una imagen específica de pobreza que fuera higiénica y redimible. Ésta, sin embargo, no generó consenso entre los mexicanos. This article analyzes the public diplomacy of the government of Lázaro Cárdenas, focusing on the administration’s decision to publicize the nation’s poverty internationally, especially in the United States. This study suggests that this was an unprecedented strategy, putting “national prestige” at risk in order to explain the importance of implementing the reforms contained in the Six Year Plan, in the face of public opinion in the United States. Taking advantage of the increased empathy felt towards the poor during the New Deal, a specific image of hygienic and redeemable poverty was constructed. However, this strategy did not generate agreement among Mexicans.

27. Immigration and other evils: A profile of Dr. C. K. Clarke and the eugenics movement in Canada

2007 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
L. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Mentally Ill ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cornell University ◽  
The Public ◽  
Canadian Population ◽  
Historical Figures ◽  
The Social ◽  
Eugenics Movement ◽  
The Government ◽  
Mental Defectives

Dr. C.K. Clarke (1857-1924) was one of Canada’s most prominent psychiatrists. He sought to improve the conditions of asylums, helped to legitimize psychiatry and established formal training for nurses. At the beginning of the 20th Century, Canada experienced a surge of immigration. Yet – as many historians have shown – a widespread anti-foreigner sentiment within the public remained. Along with many other members of the fledgling eugenics movement, Clarke believed that the proportion of “mental defectives” was higher in the immigrant population than in the Canadian population and campaigned to restrict immigration. He appealed to the government to track immigrants and deport them once they showed signs of mental illness. Clarke’s efforts lead to amendments to the Immigration Act in 1919, which authorized deportation of people who were not Canadian-born, regardless of how many years that had been in Canada. This change applied not only to the mentally ill but also to those who could no longer work due to injury and to those who did not follow social norms. Clarke is a fascinating example of how we judge historical figures. He lived in a time where what we now think of as xenophobia was a socially acceptable, even worthy attitude. As a leader in eugenics, therefore, he was a progressive. Other biographers have recognized Clarke’s racist opinions, some of whom justify them as keeping with the social values of his era. In further exploring Clarke’s interest in these issues, this paper relies on his personal scrapbooks held in the CAMH archives. These documents contain personal papers, poems and stories that proclaim his anti-Semitic and anti-foreigner views. Whether we allow his involvement in the eugenics movement to overshadow his accomplishments or ignore his racist leanings to celebrate his memory is the subject of ongoing debate. Dowbiggin IR. Keeping America Sane: Psychiatry and Eugenics in the United States and Canada 1880-1940. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 1997. McLaren A. Our Own Master Race: Eugenics in Canada 1885-1945. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1990. Roberts B. Whence They Came: Deportation from Canada 1900-1935. Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press, 1988.

Foreign Trade Regimes and Economic Development: India. By Jagdish N. Bhagwati and T.N. Sirinivasan. New York Columbia University Press (Published by the National Bureau of Economic Research 1975) 261 pages.

1977 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 112-114
Author(s):  
Abdur Razzaq Shahid
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Foreign Trade ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Exchange Rate Policy ◽  
Economic Research ◽  
National Bureau ◽  
Columbia University ◽  
The Government ◽  
Exchange Control

This volume on India is one of a series of research projects on exchange control, liberalization, and economic development, undertaken for many less developed countries. The study deals with three major topics: exchange control, liberalization, and growth. First, under 'The Anatomy of Exchange Control', the methods of allocation and intervention in the foreign trade and payments practised by the government during the restrictive period 1956-66 and their economic impact are discussed. Then, a detailed analysis of the 'Liberalization Episode' which covers the policies in the period 1966-68, including the June 1966 devaluation, and the episode's effect on price level, economic activity, and exports is given. Finally, the overall growth effects of the foreign trade regime (broadly defined as exchange rate policy plus the frame-work of relevant domestic policies such as industrial licensing), and their possible contribution to India's rather unsatisfactory economic performance are examined.

scholarly journals Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Brazilian Community Restaurants for the Dimension of Low-Income People Access to Food

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2671
Author(s):  
Mateus Santana Sousa ◽  
Camila Silveira Silva Teixeira ◽  
Jamacy Costa Souza ◽  
Priscila Ribas de Farias Costa ◽  
Renata Puppin Zandonadi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Average Energy ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Target Population ◽  
Service Capacity ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Government ◽  
Access To Food

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of community restaurants (CRs), managed by the Government of the State of Bahia/Brazil, for the dimension of access to food. The study used secondary data obtained from the public opinion survey Profile of users of community restaurants in Salvador. The nutritional information was accessed through the analysis of CRs’ menus. Adequate effectiveness of access to food was considered when the CR served meals to 50% to 70% of the users considered the target audience (individuals served by the two CRs located in the city of Salvador/Bahia/Brazil). The participants (n = 1464; 778 as low-income individuals) were adult CR users from Salvador/Brazil. Most of the respondents were male, 40 to 54 years old, not white, had up to 9 years of formal education, without a partner, and living in the municipality of Salvador. The evaluated CRs are effective in serving 53.1% of the target population in their total service capacity. Meal provision only reached an estimated 0.7% of the socially vulnerable community in the district. The average energy value of the meal served by the CR units was 853.05 kcal/meal, with a mean energy density composition classified as average (1.15 kcal/g). The effectiveness of the evaluated community restaurants showed that these instruments were minimally effective in promoting access to food for the low-income population within their total daily service capacity, and the current quantity of these facilities was insufficient. However, these instruments stand out in the fundamental role of promoting the daily distribution of meals to the Brazilian population with the highest social vulnerability levels.

scholarly journals Analysis of Budget Imbalance Dynamics in Kenya

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 352
Author(s):  
Alex Oguso ◽  
Francis M. Mwega ◽  
Nelson H. Wawire ◽  
Purna Samanta
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Time Series Data ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Series Data ◽  
Fiscal Consolidation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Distributed Lag ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The Government

<p><em>Kenya needs substantial and sustained fiscal consolidation to create fiscal space for financing the government’s election pledges, the Vision 2030 development projects, and sustainable development goals. However, the government has found it hard to sustain its fiscal consolidation attempts. This study investigates the fiscal consolidation constraints that act through the budget imbalance dynamics in Kenya using the </em><em>Olivera-Tanzi effect approach.</em><em> The study covers the period 2000-2015</em><em> using time series data and employs three </em><em>Auto-regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) error correction models</em><em> in the analysis. The study showed that a </em><em>rise in the general price levels in the economy, adjustment of minimum wages, rise</em><em> in perceived levels of corruption in the public sector and the political budget cycles (occurrence of a general election) worsen the budget imbalances (deficits) thus </em><em>constrain fiscal consolidation efforts in Kenya. The study also demonstrated that </em><em>budget imbalance dynamics in Kenya could partly be explained by the Olivera-Tanzi proposition. </em><em>The study rec</em><em>ommends measures to reduce the fiscal imbalance gap in Kenya, which include controlling both supply and demand side inflationary pressure and dealing with rent seeking behavior in the public sector.</em></p>

scholarly journals Make Yourself At Home: Can architecture enable a sense of home in Kuala Lumpur’s public housing?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Nadrah Ibrahim
Keyword(s):  
Public Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Architectural Design ◽  
Kuala Lumpur ◽  
Design Strategies ◽  
Housing Design ◽  
The Public ◽  
Design Practices ◽  
Public House ◽  
The Government

<p>Public housing in Kuala Lumpur was introduced by the government as a means of replacing informal settlements and providing housing for the lower income. Government subsidies often cover some of the costs of public housing to help keep it affordable and at the lower end of house prices. To help meet the low cost agenda, public house designs are often kept to a minimal standard in Malaysia, removing low income Malay dwellers from their ideal image of home. In the long run, signs of neglect in the public houses are reflected in the lack of care and maintenance from dwellers, vandalism and more.   This thesis proposes that good, homely architectural design practices suited to the dweller can help encourage emotional ties between dwellers (low income families) and the dwelling (public houses). Its aim is to investigate potential architectural design approaches to tackle such problems in future Kuala Lumpur public houses.  This raises the question of which homely architectural design strategies might be best utilised in the Kuala Lumpur public housing environment. The thesis begins by exploring the meaning of home in relation to both dwellers and dwelling before then identifying ‘homely’ architectural design practices suited to the Malay community. In the context of public houses, this research investigation identifies privacy, environmental comfort, security and safety as homely aspects that are most often lacking in public housing design, contributing to a less homely environment. To enhance the homely attributes of public houses, the thesis proposes ways to restore homely qualities of spaces in the public house, drawing from these three aspects in order to arrive at design opportunities best suited to the lifestyle of its dwellers.</p>

Politics, Power, and Money

2021 ◽  
pp. 98-118
Author(s):  
Sandro Galea
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
The United States ◽  
Political Leaders ◽  
The Public ◽  
Political Dynamics ◽  
Public Health Infrastructure ◽  
The Us ◽  
Data Informed ◽  
Disproportionate Burden ◽  
Trump Administration

This chapter investigates how politics and power shape health outcomes, with special emphasis on how these forces intersect with economic inequality and the disproportionate burden of sickness experienced by low-income populations. During the spread of COVID-19, American political leadership faced a test of its ability to respond to sudden crisis. Rising to such a difficult occasion requires detailed plans for what to do in such a scenario, robust public health infrastructure, and leadership which takes decisive, data-informed action, listening to experts and communicating clearly and consistently with the public. Tragically, COVID-19 found the United States lacking in all these areas. Political leaders are in a position to mold public opinion, nudging the public mind towards new ways of thinking. The precise term for this is “shifting the Overton window.” By helping to mainstream a cavalier attitude towards COVID-19, the Trump administration shifted the Overton window towards greater acceptance of behaviors which create poorer health. The chapter then looks at the failure to adequately address race in the US. Among the factors that shape health, the area of race is particularly sensitive to political dynamics.

Have You Heard? Newsworthy items from the field

2019 ◽  
Vol 101 (4) ◽  
pp. 69-70
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Test Scores ◽  
Educational Opportunity ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Research ◽  
National Bureau ◽  
Religious Expression ◽  
Working Paper ◽  
Suspension Rates ◽  
The Relationship

A Pew survey reveals how much and what kinds of religious expression students encounter in U.S. public schools. Teachers surveyed by the Data Quality Campaign say they value data, although learning to use data well requires time and training. An interactive website from the Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University enables users to explore average test scores, improvements in test scores, and trends in test scores in schools and districts across the United States. A new working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research looks at the relationship between schools’ suspension rates and the future lives of students in those schools.

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