Better Health Economics - by Tal Gross & Matthew J Notowidigdo (Hardcover)

About the Book

"A health-economics textbook for the rest of us. The economics of healthcare are messy. For most consumers, there's minimal control around costs or services. Sometimes doctors get paid a lot; other times they don't get paid at all. Insurance and drug companies are bad, except when they're good. Everyone still uses fax machines. If economics is the study of markets and efficiency, how do we make sense of any of this? Better Health Economics is an warts-and-all introduction to a field that is, economically speaking, more exceptions than rules. Drawing on combined decades of teaching, MIT-trained economists Tal Gross and Matthew J. Notowidigdo offer readers an accessible, nonexpert primer on the field's essential concepts-and, critically, a framework for thinking about this increasingly imperfect (and important!) market. Written in warm, spare prose and with a minimum of theory or math, Better Health Economics is an ideal entry point in health economics for the range of fields for which the topic is essential. By understanding health economics as an ongoing effort to retain good things while eliminating wasteful things, students from social science, medicine, and public policy will draw a richer and more scalable understanding of concepts that are traditionally opaque, even daunting. Better Health Economics is a love letter to a topic that is traditionally unloveable. Healthcare may be a failed market, but it's our failed market"--

Book Synopsis

An ideal entry point into health economics for everyone from aspiring economists to healthcare professionals.

The economics of healthcare are messy. For most consumers, there's little control over costs or services. Sometimes doctors are paid a lot; other times they aren't paid at all. Insurance and drug companies are evil, except when they're not. If economics is the study of market efficiency, how do we make sense of this?

Better Health Economics is a warts-and-all introduction to a field that is more exceptions than rules. Economists Tal Gross and Matthew J. Notowidigdo offer readers an accessible primer on the field's essential concepts, a review of the latest research, and a framework for thinking about this increasingly imperfect market.

A love letter to a traditionally unlovable topic, Better Health Economics provides an ideal entry point for students in social science, business, public policy, and healthcare. It's a reminder that healthcare may be a failed market--but it's our failed market.

Review Quotes

"[Better Health Economics] describes the field of health economics, emphasizing differences between health care and other parts of the economy. Analyzes the financial effects of health insurance, discussing how having or not having health insurance impacts health and health care."-- "Journal of Economic Literature"

"Gross and Notowidigdo prove that learning about the economics of health does not have to be a painful experience. Each of the chapters is an easy-to-swallow dose of insights into this complex and important part of our economy. Who knew this stuff could be fun?"--Richard Thaler winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics

"An accessible, readable--and often funny!--tour through health economics. Gross and Notowidigdo are master teachers."--Emily Oster author of "Expecting Better: Why The Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong-And What You Really Need To Know"

"At long last, a concise but comprehensive, conversational, and accessible tour of modern health economics. Better Health Economics is chock full of insights and covers an impressive range of important topics. This is how to teach health economics!"--Amy Finkelstein coauthor of "We've Got You Covered: Rebooting American Health Care"

About the Author

Tal Gross is associate professor of markets, public policy, and law at Boston University and a faculty research fellow for NBER. Matthew J. Notowidigdo is the David McDaniel Keller Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a research associate of NBER.