Image of Taking economics seriously
Bookmark Share

Text

Taking economics seriously

'There is nothing wrong with economics, Dean Baker contends, but economists routinely ignore their own principles when it comes to economic policy. What would policy look like if we took basic principles of mainstream economics seriously and applied them consistently? In the debate over regulation, for example, Baker--one of the few economists who predicted the meltdown of fall 2008--points out that ideological blinders have obscured the fact there is no "free market" to protect. Modern markets are highly regulated, although intrusive regulations such as copyright and patents are rarely viewed as regulatory devices. If we admit the extent to which the economy is and will be regulated, we have many more options in designing policy and deciding who benefits from it. On health care reform, Baker complains that economists ignore another basic idea: marginal cost pricing. Unlike all other industries, medical services are priced extraordinarily high, far above the cost of production, yet that discrepancy is rarely addressed in the debate about health care reform. What if we applied marginal cost pricing--making doctors' wages competitive and charging less for prescription drugs and tests such as MRIs? ..."--Product Description.OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.

Availability

No copy data

Detail Information
Series Title
-
Call Number
-
Publisher
Cambridge, Massachusetts : The MIT Press.,
Collation
1 online resource (87 pages).
Language
English
ISBN/ISSN
9780262266093
Classification
NONE
Content Type
text
Media Type
computer
Carrier Type
online resource
Edition
-
Subject(s)
Economics.
Specific Detail Info
-
Statement of Responsibility
Other Information
Cataloger
yora
Source
https://direct.mit.edu/books/book/3185/Taking-Economics-Seriously
Validator
-
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/8694.001.0001
Journal Volume
-
Journal Issue
-
Subtitle
-
Parallel Title
-
Other version/related

No other version available

File Attachment
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment