LIfe expectancy and Medicare: Krugman keeps forgetting economics when he talks politics


	LIfe expectancy and Medicare: Krugman keeps forgetting economics when he talks politics

jcfalkenberg

8-2-2009 1:54 AM

103 views

jcfalkenberg says:

Medicare works well because it devotes huge sums to the old. Extend it and the costs would skyrocket

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<div style="margin: 12px 0px; font-family: arial; color: #333333; background: #ffffff; border: solid 4px #e5e5e5; width: 100%; clear: left;"><div class="CM_CTB_Content_Wrap" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;background-color: #ffffff;"><div style="border-bottom: solid 1px #dcdcdc; white-space: nowrap; margin-bottom: 8px; background-color: #eeeeee ;background-image: url(http://clipmarks.com/images/source-bg.gif); background-repeat: repeat-x; height: 24px; line-height: 24px; vertical-align: middle; padding-bottom: 4px; color: #666666; font-size: 10px;" ><a href="http://clipmarks.com/clip-to-blog/" title="see clips that are hot right now"><img src="http://content.clipmarks.com/blog_embed/12144e96-9eab-4467-87bc-695d782f950a/2A11927E-61C2-4C15-BB63-38E2C31CA7DB/" alt="" width="19" height="19" border="0" style="vertical-align: middle; margin: 0px 4px; display: inline; border: none; float:none;" /></a>clipped from <a title="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html" href="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html" style="font-size: 11px;">www.marginalrevolution.com</a></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html"><P><A href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/08/life-expectancy-facts.php">Matt Yglesias</A> and <A href="http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/01/the-invisible-program/">Paul Krugman</A> weigh in on interpreting life expectancy statistics across the U.S. and the Netherlands.  <A href="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/07/from-the-comments-who-lives-longer.html">The fact under consideration</A>, from a few days ago, is that the U.S. has low life expectancy overall but superior life expectancy after you reach the age of 65.</P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html"><P>One way to interpret this data (re: Yglesias and Krugman) is to think that the U.S. should spread Medicare to its entire population.</P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html"><P>In the meantime, repeat this sentence after me: <STRONG>if we don't solve the costs problem, in egalitarian terms things will only get worse, no matter how many people we cover</STRONG>.</P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html">Another interpretation is that spreading Medicare to the entire population would lead to higher expenditures on the health of the young and lower expenditures on the health of the old, for better or worse. </blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html"> Medicare works as well as it does, in part, because not everyone is on Medicare or something comparable</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2009/08/interpreting-life-expectancy-statistics.html">n this country the old don't seem willing to accept losing their privileged "first in line" position</blockquote></div><div style="margin: 0px 6px 6px 4px;"><table style="font-size: 11px;border-spacing: 0px;padding: 0px;" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tr><td style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">&nbsp;</td><td align="right" style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;width:107px" width="107"><a href="http://clipmarks.com/share/2A11927E-61C2-4C15-BB63-38E2C31CA7DB/blog/" title="blog or email this clip"><img src="http://content6.clipmarks.com/images/c2b-foot.png" border="0" alt="blog it" width="107" height="17" style="border-width:0px;padding:0px;margin:0px;" /></a></td></tr></table></div></div>

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