We report results of a survey of a representative sample of the German population in which respondents were asked for their willingness-to-pay (WTP) for either an extension of their life or an improvement in their health corresponding to a gain of one quality-adjusted life year (QALY). While one...

A recent experimental study by Falk and Szech (Science, 2013) concludes that „markets erode moral values”. If this were true, economists, who have emphasized the efficiency enhancing effects of markets for centuries, would have to reconsider their judgments fundamentally. This would be no...

Most systems of health care financing in EU member states currently include elements of income redistribution. The paper analyzes the effects of shifting this kind of redistribution to the tax system and argues that this reform could create two types of efficiency gains. On the expenditure side,...

In dieser Arbeit wird der verbreitete Irrtum korrigiert, die hohe Arbeitslosigkeit unter den Geringqualifizierten werde dadurch verursacht, dass die Höhe der Sozialhilfe einen Anspruchs- oder Mindestlohn darstelle. In einem mikroökonomischen Modell des Arbeitsangebots wird gezeigt, wie der...

The book analyzes the German welfare state. It starts from a theoretical perspective and then develops changes in social security, public health care, and unemployment insurance.