Categories:
Economics and Culture
Last time I checked, there weren’t any ads for popular DVDs in the American Economic Review. But after watching the first few discs of plastic surgery drama Nip/Tuck, I feel inspired to write a pulpy pitch for economists. Here goes:
Watch…
doctors trying to make a buck!
See…
patients pay for their own medical care!
Find out…
if first-party medical payment means that the customer is always right!
Discover…
whether reputational incentives are enough to make the market for plastic surgery work!
Witness…
the creative destruction of the human body!
Ask yourself…
wouldn’t it be great if the whole health care system worked this way?
To explore…
these and many other fascinating questions, watch Nip/Tuck!
It just might work. After all, the last book in economics with a pulpy cover sold 600,000 copies.
READER COMMENTS
spencer
Mar 14 2008 at 1:50pm
But under Medicare you are just as free to switch doctors and have the government pay for it and as far as the doctor knows there is no difference between the system as it exist and a system where the patient pays out of their own pocket.
Why do you always seem to ignore this basic point in your analysis?
maybe if your analysis had a little more reality and a lot less fanasty you might be able to convince some grown-ups that you know what you are talking about.
N.
Mar 14 2008 at 2:17pm
Bryan… you still haven’t watched The Wire… Take a look at that and then we’ll talk about what DVDs the American Economic Review should be advertising.
Brad Hutchings
Mar 14 2008 at 2:45pm
I hate to say it Bryan, but you forgot to add the part about this season being sterile enough to put even economists to sleep. I don’t know anyone who plans to watch it if it comes back for another season. FWIW, I think their best moment was exposing the problems with illicit organ markets that arise because we don’t allow organ sales in the open.
Old Man
Mar 15 2008 at 10:29am
To commenter Spencer: Obviously you are not on Medicare and you are not aware of the growing number of doctors who refuse to accept Medicare patients.
Comments are closed.