The national economic implications of rising healthcare costs were poorly understood, even as the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom instituted reforms in early 2010. Presenting opportunities for cross-national policy learning, this case describes the political economy of healthcare...

Due to universal health care coverage, it is hypothesized that Canada will have less of a rural/urban disparity in health outcomes compared to the United States. It is also hypothesized that Canada’s decentralized, executive federalism offers more opportunity for public action to address rural...

Canada and the United States are typically regarded as 'laggards' in welfare state development. They are regularly classified together as 'liberal' welfare states, with relatively lower levels of welfare state fiscal effort and coverage. There is some truth to this portrait overall, but in...

Life expectancy in the United States fares poorly in international comparisons, primarily because of high mortality rates above age 50. Its low ranking is often blamed on a poor performance by the health care system rather than on behavioral or social factors. This paper presents evidence on the...

One of the most fascinating puzzles of comparative politics is why the extent of the modern state's reach into core areas of public policy varies so wildly. This paper suggests a preliminary explanation of the size of the nonprofit provision in the areas of social services, health care, and...