Abstract

Citations (5)

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Health-Health Tradeoffs

Cass R. Sunstein
Harvard University - Harvard Law School

1996

University of Chicago Law and Economics Working Paper No. 42

Abstract:
A distinctive and pervasive problem arises when government regulation designed to diminish one health risk actually increases other health risks. For example, bans on the use of asbestos may lead companies to use other, more dangerous substitutes. This essay explores health-health tradeoffs, including those that arise because regulatory expenditures increase poverty and unemployment and in that way increase poor health. The essay proposes institutional changes designed to ensure aggregate risk reduction rather than mere risk redistribution. It includes some general remarks about individual and collective rationality in the context of health risks.

JEL Classifications: D61, H51, I18, K23

Working Paper Series

Date posted: November 30, 1996 ; Last revised: February 06, 1998

Suggested Citation

Sunstein, Cass R., Health-Health Tradeoffs (1996). University of Chicago Law and Economics Working Paper No. 42. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=5099

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Contact Information

Cass R. Sunstein (Contact Author)

Harvard University - Harvard Law School ( email )

1575 Massachusetts Ave
Areeda Hall 225
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States
617-496-2291 (Phone)