Buy new:
$26.08
FREE delivery May 6 - 7
Ships from: Gulf Coast Books LLC
Sold by: Gulf Coast Books LLC
List Price: $50.00 Details

The List Price is the suggested retail price of a new product as provided by a manufacturer, supplier, or seller. Except for books, Amazon will display a List Price if the product was purchased by customers on Amazon or offered by other retailers at or above the List Price in at least the past 90 days. List prices may not necessarily reflect the product's prevailing market price.
Learn more
Save: $23.92 (48%)
FREE delivery May 6 - 7. Details
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
$$26.08 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$26.08
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Ships from
Gulf Coast Books LLC
Ships from
Gulf Coast Books LLC
Returns
Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt
Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt. You may receive a partial or no refund on used, damaged or materially different returns.
Read full return policy
Returns
Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt. You may receive a partial or no refund on used, damaged or materially different returns.
Read full return policy
Payment
Secure transaction
Your transaction is secure
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
Payment
Secure transaction
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
FREE delivery May 2 - 7. Details
Used: Very Good | Details
Sold by Better World Books: West
Condition: Used: Very Good
Comment: Used book that is in excellent condition. May show signs of wear or have minor defects. Over 100 million books sold! 100% Money-Back Guarantee. Free & Fast Shipping!
Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.
Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

John C. Goodman
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Lives at Risk: Single-Payer National Health Insurance Around the World 1st Edition

by John C. Goodman (Author), Gerald L. Musgrave (Author), Devon M. Herrick (Author),
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 15 ratings
See all formats and editions
{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$26.08","priceAmount":26.08,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"26","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"08","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"JHlo7mcx6IR8PbI9MQl7poaaebnUvfWp1hVykA8ZNGPOuZ%2BCftXLcK8zkQi2JqH07RXyWB4dJdnxI9Fljmnkjcq%2FnVte%2BtQLsM0Z9JN1fg4VvX1P8q1UK%2BUYXuMDhGFzUrP50Eoy%2BUK%2BjKMeJDPrmTCZZpPqBhAxVwGP0luJm7tKqtYQ7%2F4yd3Cafhgl67wp","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$10.34","priceAmount":10.34,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"10","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"34","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"JHlo7mcx6IR8PbI9MQl7poaaebnUvfWpU8u0pO5FLa6TVks8fhYc8RdPqsms3zl0UtMX%2BzrK4VIbIc3XPcjcMymjtwnGJbyM6BxzNO2HOZf3Om5kg3hxqJD1vaAb9i652lz9FKu7QhKrEswc5ruar0SkxPcE7pKMbbO1jmDnTGYAF3YqeAvQyQ%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

Virtually everyone agrees that our health care system needs reform. But what kind of reform? Some want a return to the system that prevailed in the 1950s. Others would like to see the adaptation of the government-run systems prevalent in other countries. The latter, national health insurance or single-payer health insurance, appears to be gaining ground in the United States. Before Americans find themselves participating in a health care system that has failed in every country it was adopted, we should be asking ourselves whether such a system is effective and efficient.

In Lives at Risk, the authors examine the critical failures of national health insurance systems without focusing on minor blemishes or easily correctable problems. In doing so, the purpose is to identify the problems common to all countries with national health insurance and to explain why these problems emerge. Most national health care systems are in a state of sustained internal crisis as costs rise and the stated goals of universal access and quality care are not met. In almost all cases, the reason is the same: the politics of medicine. The problems of government-run health care systems flow inexorably from the fact that they are government-run rather than market driven.
Previous page
  1. ISBN-10
    0742541525
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0742541528
  3. Edition
    1st
  4. Publication date
    August 13, 2004
  5. Language
    English
  6. Dimensions
    6.06 x 0.82 x 8.96 inches
  7. Print length
    272 pages
  8. See all details
Next page
Books with Buzz
Books with Buzz
Discover the latest buzz-worthy books, from mysteries and romance to humor and nonfiction. Explore more

Editorial Reviews

Review

Thoroughly examines the systemic failures of national health insurance programs around the world. It identifies problems inherent in government-run health care and explains why these problems inevitably emerge. And, it demolishes one by one the prevailing myths put forward by advocates of national health insurance as the solution to issues confronting American health care. ― Coverings

The American Medical Association strongly opposes single-payer national health insurance. Lives at Risk provides a wealth of evidence that confirms the AMA's position. -- Donald J. Palmisano, M.D., J.D., president, American Medical Association, 2003-2004

This book will be an eye-opener for anyone who thinks a government-run system is the solution for our health care problem. -- Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives

With the alarming escalation in the cost of health care, drastic changes are critically needed. Lives at Risk not only presents the magnitude of this problem, but explores possible solutions, including national insurance, to correct it. This is the best book I have read on this subject. -- Kenneth H. Cooper, M.D., M.P.H., author of Aerobics

A single-payer system has great political appeal. It promises to provide quality health care to all, regardless of income, religion, race, or initial state of health. But does it live up to that promise? In this important book, Goodman, Musgrave, and Herrick set out to find the answer. -- from the Foreword by Milton Friedman, Nobel laureate and senior research fellow at the Hoover Institution

Anybody who is tempted by the Canada [single-payer health insurance] model should read Lives at Risk. ― National Review

Recommended. ― Choice Reviews

If you're looking for intellectual ammunition to refute the perennial myths about the triumph of socialized medicine in the rest of the developed world, this book is essential. ― JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association

Goodman, Musgrave and Herrick do not just make a hard-boiled assessment of single-payer systems, then run for cover. Instead of the usual worn-out generalities and obsolete assumptions, they point to specific ways to harness the intelligence of consumers and the power of the free market to improve health care in the U.S.. Regardless of whether the reader agrees with the authors' conclusions, Lives at Risk helps us to understand how different policy approaches might lead to two very different outcomes for the U.S. health care system: complete meltdown under single-payer health care or transformation into a system driven by consumer demand instead of health care bureaucrats and political expediency. ― Health Insurance Underwriter

Goodman and company's book does an especially good job of casting doubt on the common belief that more governmental control of health care will prove more rational, productive, and fair than our current market-state mix. ― Reason

About the Author

John C. Goodman is the founder and president of the National Center for Policy Analysis. The Wall Street Journal called Dr. Goodman "the father of Medical Savings Accounts," and National Journal declared him "winner of the devolution derby" because his ideas on ways to transfer power from government to the people have had a significant impact on Capitol Hill. He is the author of seven books.

Gerald L. Musgrave is president of Economics America, Inc., a senior fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis, and a fellow at the National Association of Business Economists and chairman of its Health Economics Roundtable. Dr. Musgrave has written widely on health care and other issues and is the author or co-author of more than 60 publications.

Devon M. Herrick is senior fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; 1st edition (August 13, 2004)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0742541525
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0742541528
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.06 x 0.82 x 8.96 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 15 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
John C. Goodman

John C. Goodman

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

John C. Goodman is the President of the Goodman Institute for Public Policy Research, and author of the widely acclaimed, new Independent book, A Better Choice: Healthcare Solutions for America, and the award-winning Independent book, Priceless: Curing the Healthcare Crisis. The Wall Street Journal and the National Journal, among other media, have called him the “Father of Health Savings Accounts.”

Dr. Goodman is frequently invited to testify before Congress on health care reform, and he is the author of more than fifty studies on health policy, retirement reform and tax issues plus ten books, including Living with Obamacare: A Consumer's Guide; Lives at Risk: Single Payer National Health Insurance Around the World (with Gerald Musgrave and Devon Herrick); Leaving Women Behind: Modern Families, Outdated Laws (with Kimberley A. Strassel and Celeste Colgan); and the trailblazing Patient Power: Solving America's Health Care Crisis, that sold more than 300,000 copies. His other books include The Handbook on State Health Care Reform, National Health Care in Great Britain: Lessons for the U.S.A., Economics of Public Policy: The Micro View (with Edwin Dolan), Fighting the War of Ideas in Latin America, and Privatization.

Dr. Goodman received his Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University, he served as President of the National Center for Policy Analysis for 31 years and has taught and completed research at Columbia University, Stanford University, Dartmouth College, Southern Methodist University and the University of Dallas. In 1988, he received the prestigious Duncan Black Award for the best scholarly article on public choice economics.

He regularly appears on television and radio news programs, including those on Fox News Channel, CNN, PBS, Fox Business Network and CNBC, and his articles appear in The Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, USA Today, Forbes, National Review, Health Affairs, Kaiser Health News and other national publications. Dr. Goodman was also the pivotal lead expert in the grassroots public policy campaign, “Free Our Health Care Now,” an unsurpassed national education effort to communicate patient-centered alternatives to a government-run health care system. The initiative resulted in the largest online petition ever delivered on Capitol Hill.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
15 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Merk Dogg
5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Healthcare Related Stories
Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2022
Verified Purchase
There are several stories that relate to how community health issues were addressed globally. Good source for students.
Helpful
 Report
Christopher G. Loverich
4.0 out of 5 stars The good overpowers the bad...
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2010
Verified Purchase
The Good:

Systematically looks at individual belief's about health care (ex: Costs, Access, etc) and then attempts to contrast popular belief's with cold hard facts. This makes it simple to simply skip to a section that interests you. Moreover, for its breadth, it is a very fast read. Some of the stronger arguments deal with lack of rural access to care, the myth that preventative care will save money, or that a nationalized health system will save money in general (etc...)

While the chapter on preventative care is particularly good, the best parts of this book are surprisingly those with the fewest hard data and the most simple logic. For example - the insight that "We could potentially spend our ENTIRE gross domestic product on health care in USEFUL ways" - seems to escape 99% of those currently debating health care. From this argument one can take the real dilemma of health care to its logical conclusion - you have to, in some way, limit care. This can only be done by a) administrative decisions or b) market forces.

Thus, the author's make strong arguments for what lies behind those two forces - i.e. what drives administrative decision making and what types of market forces are responsible for determining costs. In the final chapters of the book, the Author's take their own views, using the latter argument, to discuss health savings accounts - their historical use and how they could be used more effectively. This section is the real gem.

The Bad:

Well, for starters, the sub-title doesn't really mesh with the overall content. They spend a majority of their arguments on the British NHS which, from what I can tell, is among the worst nationalized health care systems in the developed world. This is too bad as I can see opponents of the author's view writing the work off entirely for not talking more about France or Japan - "Well true that would be bad, but if we implemented it here it would be more like the healthcare systems in Japan, France..." etc etc... In that regard, it neither fully dispels all the myths nor arms those in agreement with the author's with enough data.

Overall:

The strengths easily outweigh the weakness', and there is enough validity in their arguments to make this worthwhile to just about anyone interested in the current debates. It is too bad the focus seemed to fall on the weaker NHS like systems and not the stronger - for this reason it will too quickly be written off as biased by many.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Marlena B
5.0 out of 5 stars Debunking the myths of socialized medicine
Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2008
Verified Purchase
Mr Goodman points out some important facts about the uninsured in America, as well as the lies which are pushed by the leftist and the media. He intimately describes the socialized medicine systems throughout the world and compares those systems with America's healthcare system. A well-researched, compelling book! This is a MUST READ for anyone who thinks that Government controlled, single-payer "free" healthcare is what America Needs!!
4 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Conrad F. Meier
5.0 out of 5 stars Health Care in the Hands of Bureaucrats
Reviewed in the United States on January 19, 2005
There is little disagreement among stakeholders in the U.S. health care system--patients, insurers, physicians, policy analysts, and the like--that America's health care system must change to adjust to the twenty-first century. But what to do?

Some observers advocate a return to the fee-for-service health care arrangement that prevailed in the 1950s. Others want to move in the opposite direction, toward the government-run health care bureaucracies common in other developed countries.

Advocates of the latter approach, known as universal or single-payer health insurance, are a minority in the U.S. health policy debate--but they are vocal and well-funded. In Lives at Risk, John Goodman, Gerald Musgrave, and Devon Herrick urge that we disregard pleas for such a drastic change in our approach to health care until we carefully consider whether such a system--failing in every country where it currently exists--could possibly be effective and efficient for the U.S.

Goodman is founder and president of the Dallas, Texas-based National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA); Musgrave and Herrick are NCPA senior fellows. In Lives at Risk, they examine in microscopic detail the many flaws in the structure of single-payer health insurance, and they provide evidence that single-payer social policy is not in the best interest of consumers.

They explain, for example, how universal health insurance systems encourage over-consumption by patients, and how such over-consumption always leads to financial crises and broken promises of universal access and quality care. "One of the cardinal beliefs of advocates of single-payer health insurance is that health care should be free at the point of consumption, regardless of willingness or ability to pay," they write. Not surprisingly, such "free" medical care is over-utilized--to the point where demand exceeds the system's ability to sustain supply.

Promise Clashes with Reality

Goodman and his coauthors reveal how the promise of "health care for all" under a single-payer system clashes with reality. "The promise of national health insurance," they explain, "is that government will make health care available on the basis of need rather than the ability to pay." But in reality, single-payer systems tend to overspend on primary care for the healthy, while denying more expensive specialist care to those with serious medical problems.

The evidence creates a sharp contrast between the U.S. health care system and single-payer systems abroad. Although single-payer advocates claim their approach delivers health care more efficiently, more equitably, and at lower cost than our system, those claims crack open under the weight of the data.

According to Lives at Risk, wherever national health care is the only option, rationing by waiting is the norm. Rationing decisions are made by local health care bureaucrats, who are responsible only for spending, not healing.

Lives at Risk should be required reading for academics and policymakers of all opinions on health policy reform--and also for the medical community, consumers, advocates of single-payer insurance, and journalists who report on the issue. Newt Gingrich, former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, suggests in an editorial review, "This book will be an eye-opener for anyone who thinks a government-run system is the solution for our healthcare problem."

Information Age Requires New Approach

Dr. Robert Hamilton, a retired general and vascular surgeon living in Alton, Illinois, sees Lives at Risk from a physician's point of view. "Although this book is a brilliant exposition of the grand-scale effects of single payer health care financing and the economics of health care delivery, the implications for individual physicians and their patients are enormous," he noted

"Systemic inefficiencies, which interfere with timely, appropriate diagnosis and treatment of the individual patient, are dangerous and frustrating for physicians and patients alike in a system dominated by a government health care bureaucracy."

Hamilton suggests, "The way out of our professional doldrums is not through greater control of our profession by outside forces, but by making the patient-physician relationship the driving force. This book will restore optimism to those physicians whose frustration with imposed systems has nearly led them to give up on their noble profession."

Goodman, Musgrave, and Herrick do not just make a hard-boiled assessment of single-payer systems and then run for cover. They also turn their attention to the U.S. health care system. Instead of the usual worn-out generalities and obsolete assumptions, they point to specific problems and lay out specific ways to harness the intelligence of consumers and the power of the free market to improve health care in the U.S.

"The modern era has inherited two models of health insurance: the fee-for-service model and the HMO model. Neither is appropriate for the Information Age," they write. "Both models assume that (1) the amount of sickness is limited and largely outside the control of the insured, (2) methods of treating illness are limited and well-defined, and (3) because of patient ignorance and asymmetry of information, treatment decisions will always be filtered by physicians, based on their own knowledge and experience or clinical practice guidelines."

Regardless of whether the reader agrees with the authors' conclusions, Lives at Risk helps us understand how different policy approaches might lead to two very different outcomes for the U.S. health care system: complete meltdown under single-payer health care, or transformation into a system driven by consumer demand instead of health care bureaucrats and political expediency.

Conrad F. Meier (meier@heartland.org) is senior fellow in health policy at The Heartland Institute and Editor Emeritus Health Care News
40 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Lawless1895
5.0 out of 5 stars You may have to read it more than once
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 14, 2017
Verified Purchase
If you are from Britain, then there will be a gem of information in every single paragraph. You may have to read it more than once for this fact. I have to give it 5 stars just for opening my eyes to how much we are lied about the NHS.
One person found this helpful
 Report
Squire
5.0 out of 5 stars An enlightening assessment
Reviewed in Canada on November 26, 2012
Verified Purchase
A surprisingly balanced assessment of the means by which the limitless demand for health care is, and must be, regulated. I bought the book expecting it to be a right leaning argument against government medicine. It isn't. The book is an enlightening read that caters to neither a right nor left political bias.
Report