Canice Prendergast

Key Takeaways Police reform measures are under consideration in many US cities following the May 2020 death of George Floyd and the subsequent civil unrest. Evidence from police reform proposals in Los Angeles suggests that such reform could have unintended consequences. Arrest-to-crime rates fell by 40 percent after reforms were initiated. Other data, including suggestive police surveys, provide evidence of “drive and wave" behavior by policy officers.

Vaccinating the world’s population quickly in a pandemic has enormous health and economic benefits. We analyze the problem faced by governments in determining the scale and structure of procurement for vaccines. We analyze alternative approaches to procurement, arguing that buyers should directly fund manufacturing capacity and shoulder most of the risk of failure, while maintaining some direct incentives for speed.

Podcast episode • Dec 3, 2020 Pre-existing Confusion: The US Health Insurance System Eduardo Porter, Tess Vigeland, Katherine Baicker, Matthew J. Notowidigdo, Stacy Lindau The American health insurance system is complex, politically divisive, in need of reform, and facing... Topics: Health care, COVID-19