A common assumption behind most health care reform proposals is that the private sector is causing our national health care crisis. In fundamental ways, the federal government rather than the private sector is responsible for our health policy crisis, and state governments can make few improvements as long as unwise federal policies remain in place.
As politicians confront the difficult task of health care reform, they face a dizzying array of reform plans. In fact, there are so many plans that most analysts have ceased trying to keep track of them. Yet the vast majority of all plans — both good and bad — are based on a few simple idea. This backgrounder provides a brief summary.
Today, there are more than 8,757 tariffs – plus vast numbers of quotas, so-called voluntary import restraints and other import restrictions. All too often these barriers to trade impose their greatest burdens on low-income families.