EMD Seminar Series: Eli Fenichel - “How Health and the Environment Enter National Economic Data and Why It Matters"

Today, health care spending makes up about 17% of GDP. But what does that mean? It turns out that health, at least from the perspective of people engaged in public health, enters our economic data in a rather odd way. It enters based on expenditure, not outcome. Spending a $100K on patient enters GDP the same whether patient lives or dies. This has implications for major policy discussions around public health, medical research, and contributors to public health, like environmental quality. Efforts to develop natural capital accounts in the United States and elsewhere have brought these issues into focus. Efforts to understand the economic costs of COVID-19 have brought these issues into focus. Understanding the economic statistical system and economic statistics is increasingly important for public health professionals. This talk will introduce these systems and discuss potential changes afoot with a focus on why this matters in the field of public health.

YSPH values inclusion and access for all participants.

If you have questions about accessibility or would like to request an accommodation, please contact Christina Ciarleglio at christina.ciarleglio@yale.edu.