This paper examines the sources of expenditure growth in heart attack treatment. We first show that essentially all of cost growth is a result of the diffusion of particular intensive technologies; the prices paid for a given level of technology have been constant or falling over time. We then...

A puzzling feature of many medical innovations is that they simultaneously appear to reduce unit costs and increase total costs. We consider this phenomenon by examining the diffusion of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) -- a treatment for coronary artery disease -- over the...