Economics, Health, and Post-Industrial Society

Abstract

Increases in medical resources, and access to care, do not lead to comparable decreases in either morbidity or mortality in modern nations. The number of years of schooling, rather than level of income, emerges as the surest correlate of good health, although progress in medical science and changes in productivity remain powerful influences. Family, religion, and especially government, are examined as institutions serving competing goals of security, freedom, and equality.