M.V. Lee Badgett, economics and public policy, comments in a story about why a new question on the national census about same sex couples is important. She says the data generated by the question will help guide decisions on how to battle discrimination against same-sex couples and may serve as the basis for new programs to assist them. (WABE [public radio in Atlanta], 12/20/19)
Author: econnews
An article discussing what the U.S. Republican Party can learn from last week’s election in the United Kingdom. notes that Prime Minister Boris Johnson brought in Arindrajit Dube, professor of economics at UMass Amherst, to consult on a plan to raise the minimum wage in the U.K. (Vox, 12/17/19)
Robert N. Pollin, Distinguished Professor in economics and co-director of the Political Economy Research Institute, is one of the researchers who have developed a cost model being used in South Africa’s Integrated Resource Plan for moving from coal-fired energy to renewable energy by 2030. The plan, written by Pollin and Brian Callaci, was published in the journal U.S. Labor Studies earlier this year. (Daily Maverick [South Africa], 12/10/19)
A columnist writing about how a single-payer healthcare system would be financed cites a proposal from Robert N. Pollin, Distinguished Professor in economics and co-director of the Political Economy Research Institute, that show both savings and new sources of tax revenues. (North Coast Journal [Calif.], 12/5/19)
James K. Boyce, professor emeritus in economics, writes about his proposal to implement carbon dividends, a system of putting a price on carbon emissions and returning the revenue to the public. (National Catholic Reporter, 11/20/19)
A Nov. 20 piece in The Conversation citing research by Gerald Friedman, economics, about costs for Medicare for All, was picked up the AP and reprinted. (Lincoln Journal Star [Nebraska], 11/20/19)
“An economist’s guide” to watching tonight’s Democratic presidential debate mentions Gerald Friedman, economics, who has estimated a full-scale single-payer health care system would cost as much as $40 trillion over a decade. (The Conversation, 11/20/19)
Gerald Friedman, economics, writes that making Medicare available to people of all ages is a simpler and less costly path to solving America’s health care problem than the solutions proposed by most presidential candidates. Medicare is currently only available to individuals age 65 and over. (The Good Men Project, 11/13/19)
Deepankar Basu, economics, writes a column where he suggests several things that can be done to respond to the slowing economy in India. He says increasing wages for some workers, expanding the country’s food subsidy and boosting public investment would kickstart the investment cycle in the country and ease supply constraints. (Hindustan Times, 11/10/19)
A fact-checking column in The New York Times looks at the various claims made by political candidates about the overall costs and benefits of Medicare for All. The story notes that Gerald C. Friedman, economics, has estimated that a single-payer system would cost about $24 trillion. (New York Times, 11/9/19)