Study
| EST. READ TIME 2 MIN.Fraser Forum - September 2008: Health Care Dollars and Sense
In this issue:
Up Front: Fraser goes to Washington
by Brett J. Skinner
In June 2008, the Fraser Institute had a successful excursion to Washington, DC, where participants met with a number of high-level officials and policy experts.
The most valuable resource
by Walter E. Williams
Contrary to the myths we hear about overpopulation, human beings are actually our greatest resource.
Economic freedom in North America
by Amela Karabegović and Fred McMahon
Though Alberta has the second highest level of economic freedom in North America, the rest of Canada lags behind the US states.
The potential of medical savings accounts
by Fred McMahon
Medical savings accounts could bring market dynamics and efficiency to Canada’s government-funded health care system.
How much do we really pay?
by Nadeem Esmail and Milagros Palacios
A little more than $115 billion of our tax dollars was spent on publicly funded health care in 2007/2008.
Are we ready for WWWI?
by Alan W. Dowd
Cyber warfare, digital attacks involving streams of code instead of bullets and bombs, should be taken seriously as a threat to our national security.
Reform at the mercy of government
by James Gubb
Market-based health care reforms in the UK have been crippled by the government’s unwillingness to stop directing the service from the centre.
P3s in Ontario hospitals
by Mark Rovere
Public-private partnerships can provide a more costeffective way to build and maintain hospital facilities.
15 years of grinding “progress”
by Mark Milke
Though British Columbia’s treaty process has had some positive elements, on the whole, it has been incomplete, illiberal, and expensive.
Internet access and net neutrality
by Steven Globerman
Expanding government regulation of Internet Service Providers would create inefficiencies and discourage innovation.
Toronto in decline
by Fred McMahon
Torontonians have reason to be concerned about their city’s future. A recent census shows that the city is growing slowly and losing jobs.
The health of nations
by Lucy Davis and Fredrik Erixon
Trade in health care services could help industrialized countries control rising health care costs.
Medicare’s steep price
by Nadeem Esmail
The total cost of Medicare is much higher than a simple tally would suggest because of the costs associated with administering the tax system.
Reforming the US health care system
by John C. Goodman
John McCain’s plan has a better chance of improving the American health care system than that of any other serious presidential contender.
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Fred McMahon
Resident Fellow, Dr. Michael A. Walker Chair in Economic FreedomFred McMahon is a Fraser Institute Resident Fellow and holder of the Dr. Michael A. Walker Chair in Economic Freedom.He has an M.A. in Economics from McGill University. Mr. McMahon manages the Economic Freedom of the World Project and coordinates the Economic Freedom Network, an international alliance of over 100 think tank partners in about 100 nations and territories. His research focuses on global issues such as development, trade, governance and economic structure. Mr. McMahon is the author of numerous research articles and several books including, Looking the Gift Horse in the Mouth: The Impact of Federal Transfers on Atlantic Canada, which won the Sir Antony Fisher International Memorial Award for advancing public policy debate, Road to Growth: How Lagging Economies Become Prosperous, and Retreat from Growth: Atlantic Canada and the Negative Sum Economy.He has written for numerous publications including the European Journal of Political Economy, the SAIS Journal (School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University), the Wall Street Journal, Policy Options, National Post, Time (Canada), Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen, and most other major Canadian newspapers. Research articles he has recently authored or co-authored include: Economic Freedom of North America, Quebec Prosperity: Taking the Next Step, The Unseen Wall: The Fraser Institute's Annual Trade Survey, and Economic Freedom of the Arab World.… Read more -
Walter Williams
Walter Williams is John M. Olin Distinguished Scholar at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, and is a syndicated columnist.He has a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California at Los Angeles.… Read more -
Brett J. Skinner
Brett J. Skinner Dr. Brett J. Skinner was the Fraser Institutes Director of Health Policy Research (2004 to 2012) andwas also the Institutes President and CEO (2010 and 2012). Dr. Skinner has a B.A. from the University of Windsor, an M.A. through joint studies between the University of Windsor and Wayne State University in Detroit (Michigan), and a Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario, where he has lectured in both the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Department of Political Science. Dr. Skinner has authored or co-authored approximately 50 major original pieces of applied economics and public policy research. In 2003 he was a co-winner of the Atlas Economic Research Foundations Sir Antony Fisher Memorial Award for innovative projects in public policy. Dr. Skinners book, Canadian Health Policy Failures: Whats wrong? Who gets hurt? Why nothing changes, was a finalist for Atlas 2009 Fisher book prize. His research has been published through several think-tanks including the Fraser Institute (Vancouver), the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies (Halifax), the Pacific Research Institute (San Francisco), the American Enterprise Institute (Washington, D.C.) and the Israel National Institute for Health Policy Research (Israel). His work has also been published in several academic journals including Economic Affairs, Pharmacoeconomics and Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics. Dr. Skinner appears and is cited frequently as an expert in the Canadian, American, and global media. He has presented his research at conferences and events around the world, including testifying before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health in Ottawa, and briefing bi-partisan Congressional policy staff at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.… Read more -
Milagros Palacios
Director, Addington Centre for Measurement, Fraser InstituteMilagros Palacios is the Director for the Addington Centre for Measurement at the Fraser Institute. She holds a B.S. in IndustrialEngineering from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru and a M.Sc. in Economics from the University of Concepcion, Chile. Ms. Palacios has studied public policy involving taxation, government finances, investment, productivity, labour markets, and charitable giving, for nearly 10 years. Since joining the Institute, Ms. Palacios has authored or coauthored over 70 comprehensive research studies, 70 commentaries and four books. Her recent commentaries have appeared in major Canadian newspapers such as the National Post, Toronto Sun, Windsor Star, and Vancouver Sun.… Read more -
Alan Dowd
Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
Alan W. Dowd is a Senior Fellow of the Fraser Institute, Senior Editor of Fraser Insight and Managing Director ofthe Institute's EFNA Network. In addition, Dowd conducts research into defence and security issues. He co-authored the Fraser Institute report Cybersecurity Challenges for Canada and the United States; has contributed to the Institute’s Economic Freedom of North America Annual Report (EFNA); helped launch the Institute’s EFNA Network in 2014; and continues to manage and coordinate the EFNA Network, which today enfolds more than 60 member-organizations in 47 U.S. states, Canada and Mexico. An award-winning writer, Dowd is a frequent contributor to American Legion Magazine, Military Officer, The American, Landing Zone, and American Outlook. In addition, his writing has appeared in Fraser Forum, Claremont Review of Books, Policy Review, Parameters, Journal of Diplomacy & International Relations, Diplomat & International Canada, World Politics Review, World & I, National Post, Baltimore Sun, Washington Times, Washington Examiner, Sacramento Bee, Indianapolis Star, Detroit News, Vancouver Sun, Wall Street Journal Europe, Jerusalem Post, Financial Times Deutschland, and the online editions of the American Interest, National Review, and Weekly Standard. Dowd has served as an adjunct professor at Butler University and Anderson University; was a founding member of the Sagamore Institute leadership team, where he continues to hold a senior fellow post; and was director of Hudson Institute’s corporate headquarters. He earned a B.A. with departmental high honors from Butler University and an M.A. from Indiana University.… Read more -
Nadeem Esmail
Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
Nadeem Esmail is a Senior Fellow of the Fraser Institute. He first joined the Fraser Institute in 2001, served asDirector of Health System Performance Studies from 2006 to 2009, and has been a Senior Fellow since 2010. Mr. Esmail has spearheaded critical Fraser Institute research including the annual Waiting Your Turn survey of surgical wait times across Canada and How Good Is Canadian Health Care?, an international comparison of health care systems. In addition, Mr. Esmail has authored or co-authored more than 30 comprehensive studies and more than 150 articles on a wide range of topics including the cost of public health care insurance, international comparisons of health care systems, hospital performance, medical technology, and physician shortages. A frequent commentator on radio and TV, Mr. Esmail's articles have appeared in newspapers across North America. Mr. Esmail completed his B.A. (Honours) in Economics at the University of Calgary and received an M.A. in Economics from the University of British Columbia.… Read more -
Steven Globerman
Senior Fellow and Addington Chair in Measurement, Fraser Institute
Mr. Steven Globerman is a Senior Fellow and Addington Chair in Measurement at the Fraser Institute. Previously, he held tenuredappointments at Simon Fraser University and York University and has been a visiting professor at the University of California, University of British Columbia, Stockholm School of Economics, Copenhagen School of Business, and the Helsinki School of Economics.He has published more than 200 articles and monographs and is the author of the book The Impacts of 9/11 on Canada-U.S. Trade as well as a textbook on international business management. In the early 1990s, he was responsible for coordinating Fraser Institute research on the North American Free Trade Agreement.In addition, Mr. Globerman has served as a researcher for two Canadian Royal Commissions on the economy as well as a research advisor to Investment Canada on the subject of foreign direct investment. He has also hosted management seminars for policymakers across North America and Asia.Mr. Globerman was a founding member of the Association for Cultural Economics and is currently a member of the American and Canadian Economics Associations, the Academy of International Business, and the Academy of Management.He earned his BA in economics from Brooklyn College, his MA from the University of California, Los Angeles, and his PhD from New York University.… Read more -
Amela Karabegovic
Amela Karabegovi is a former Senior Economist of the Fraser Institute. She holds a B.M. (Great Distinction) in General Managementfrom the University of Lethbridge in Alberta and an M.A. in Economics from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia. She was a coauthor of the Economic Freedom of North America , Economic Freedom of the Arab World , Myths and Realities of TILMA , Transparency of Labour Relations Boards in Canada and the United States , Measuring Labour Markets in Canada and the United States , Measuring the Flexibility of Labour Relations Laws in Canada and the United States , Tax and Expenditure Limitations: The Next Step in Fiscal Discipline , and the Prosperity Series-Ontario .… Read more -
Mark Milke
Mark Milke was a senior fellow of the Fraser Institute between 2010 and 2015. Mr. Milke led the Institute’s workon Alberta-related issues as well as contributing to a broad host of national and regional studies. Mr. Milke is currently an independent analyst and consultant in Calgary.Mr. Milke has authored four books on Canadian politics and policy and dozens of studies on topics such as property rights, public sector pensions, corporate welfare, competition policy, aboriginal matters and taxes. Prior to joining the Fraser Institute, Mr. Milke was the research director for the Frontier Centre for Public Policy and former B.C. and Alberta director with the Canadian Taxpayers’ Federation. His work has been published widely in Canada since 1997 and in addition to the Fraser Institute, his papers have also been published in the United States by the American Enterprise Institute, the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Heritage Foundation and in Europe by the Brussels-based Centre for European Studies.Mr. Milke’s opinion columns appear regularly in the Calgary Herald and Globe and Mail, as well as in the National Post, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Vancouver Sun, Vancouver Province, and Victoria Times Colonist. Mr. Milke has a Master’s degree from the University of Alberta where his M.A. thesis analyzed human rights in East Asia; he also has a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Calgary where his doctoral dissertation analyzed the rhetoric of Canadian-American relations. Mr. Milke is president of Civitas, and a past lecturer in Political Philosophy and International Relations at the University of Calgary.… Read more -
Mark Rovere
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John Goodman
John C. Goodman is President, CEO, and Kellye Wright fellow of the National Center for Policy Analysis.