Under the ACA,  some 62 preventive services and products will be free (in the past much of the preventative medicine was charged to patient on a non-negotiated rate. Today, they are financed through regulations applied to the insurance industry): no copays and the deductible will not apply. The list includes vision checks for children, birth […]

We hear economists calling for higher inflation to lower the burden of debt on borrowers. Yet, we hear them complain about slow real GDP growth too. (secular stagnation) Can we have our cake and eat it too? Can we get real GDP growth alongside inflation? Real GDP rose by 3.6% on an annual basis for […]

Paul Krugman is honest in his search to explain secular stagnation, but he is missing a crucial piece to the puzzle. And thus he comes to an incomplete conclusion. But then we see that Noah Smith is bringing the missing piece to the table. (update: Noah Smith cites the work of Michael Elsby, University of […]

by Dale Coberly 2013 Trustees Report: Social Security is Running Out of Worthless IOU’s! 9.6 Trillion Dollar Unfunded Deficit! ho hum I did not take a hard look at the 2013 Trustees Report when it came out last Spring because I thought I knew pretty much what it would say, and what it would amount […]

Economic Populism Is a Dead-End for Democrats recently appeared in The Wall Street Journal, appropriately enough, and comes from Third Way.  A commenter asked why it was important to list who was on the trustee list, which included some Dems and others.  I won’t go through the laundry list on taxes, social safety net, and other […]

Sadly, not in the real world. But in the econoblogosphere. Much of that is arguably thanks to the newly launched Washington Center for Equitable Growth. Traveling and family time, so I can’t do a big writeup, so just a few somewhat randomly chosen links: Brad Plumer: Is inequality bad for economic growth? Jared Bernstein: The Impact of Inequality […]

A note at  Baseline Scenario  seemed ironic at a glance : Preventing Regulatory Capture is finally on sale (which means you can’t download it for free from Tobin anymore)    ( Preventing Regulatory Capture.)

I have a student in Argentina that sent me a message today. He says that it has become extremely difficult to take money out of the banks, even $100 USD. It is considered capital flight with legal difficulties. He says that $2 billion USD are leaving Argentina daily. The Argentine peso has been falling but […]