Opinion: deciphering healthcare's irrationality

While book endorsements are not a regular feature here, Irrationality in Health Care by Douglas Hough, is worth your attention. It's an introduction to behavioral economics and an application to health care. Books such as Thinking Fast and Slow and Nudge have pushed the field, and Hough's contribution connects the dots to health care. There are plenty of dots, such as: -- Why does the public support specific parts of the Affordable Care Act, though not the overall law containing these provisions? Why is giving consumers lots of choices in their health plans a bad idea? Why do many patients not adhere to their diagnostic and treatment plans? Why will some people give away a valuable asset (think blood or kidney) that they would not sell?