The United States has the best health care available in the world, yet many feel there is a crisis in health care. Health care expenditures are high and growing rapidly. These expenditures currently stand at $1 trillion, making this one of the largest sectors in the U.S. economy (14% of GDP). At the same time, health care markets are in the midst of a profound transformation, resulting in consolidation and increased concentration. Analysts have declared that the Medicare Trust Fund will be bankrupt in 2008. The number of uninsured now stands at 41 million, and demand for Medicaid is growing while funding is being cut. What are the forces that have led us to this situation? How serious are those problems, and what might we do about them? In this course we will use economics to analyze the functioning of the health care sector and appropriate public policy. The topics will include: health care costs: what?, why?, too much?, is medical care different?, the demand for medical care, the demand and supply of health insurance, the role of competition in medical markets, managed care, and the role of the public sector. The topic list is flexible and student input will be solicited and welcomed. We will discuss these issues both through active in-class discussion and through scheduled debates on current health policy topics.