— “Expanding Trade in Medical Care
through Telemedicine,” by catoinstitute Trade Policy Analyst Simon Lester
Want to learn more? Register for our May 28 event, Removing Barriers to Online Medical Care. Can’t make it? Watch the livestream!
In the January issue of Cato Unbound, Christopher Snowdon reviews the efficacy and fairness of sin taxes aimed at preventing obesity. He finds that at low levels of taxation, consumers don’t change their behavior appreciably, and when they do abandon the taxed foods, it will often be in favor of other high-calorie choices. Very high levels of taxation may be needed to bring about significant public health benefits, but here the evidence is sparse, because few jurisdictions have tried taxation at these levels. Moreover, all such sin taxes are regressive; they hurt the poor disproportionately and become justly politically unpopular. Snowdon concludes that sin taxes aimed at obesity are an ineffective public policy tool, even on their proponents’ own terms.
Discussion will continue through the end of the month with essays by Baylen Linnekin, Jennifer Harris, and Russell Saunders. Follow Cato Unbound on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest contributions.
Obesity remains a serious health problem and it is no secret that many people want to lose weight. Behavioral economists typically argue that “nudges” help individuals with various decision-making flaws to live longer, healthier, and better lives.
In an article in the new issue of Regulation, Michael L. Marlow discusses how nudging by government differs from nudging by markets, and explains why market nudging is the more promising avenue for helping citizens to lose weight.
The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA ), enacted in 1986, requires Medicare-contracting hospitals with emergency rooms to screen and stabilize anyone presenting for emergency care, regardless of ability to pay. An article in the new issue ofRegulation proposes that EMTALA regularly violates the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause. Also in this issue, Michael L. Marlow argues that the FDA’s treatment of e-cigarettes jeopardizes public health, and Robert Scharff and Sherzod Abdukadirov say that there is little evidence that the FDA’s new food labels will improve Americans’ health.
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