By Don McCanne, MD 

Democracy Now!

February 25, 2009

Nobel Prize-Winning Economist Joseph Stiglitz

We get reaction to President Obama’s speech from Nobel economics laureate and former World Bank chief economist, Joseph Stiglitz.

Amy Goodman:  And healthcare? He’s called for universal healthcare, but he does not call for single-payer healthcare. 

Joseph Stiglitz:  I think that there are some fundamental problems in the efficiency of our healthcare system. And what we’ve seen is that the private healthcare insurers do not know how to deliver an efficient way. 

Amy Goodman:  Do you support single-payer healthcare? 

Joseph Stiglitz:  I think I’ve reluctantly come to the view that it’s the only alternative. You know, we’ve tried a lot of other things. And we’ve been — you know, I was in the Clinton administration, and we debated a lot of alternatives, and I’ve watched things as they’ve emerged and, you know, evolved over the last twelve, sixteen years, and I think there’s a growing consensus that the private market exclusion is not going to work. 

Amy Goodman:  Joe Stiglitz, I want to thank you for being with us, the Nobel Prize-winning economist, professor at Columbia University, co-author of The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict.

These are the closing comments in this 28 minute video, audio and transcript:

http://www.democracynow.org/2009/2/25/stieglitz

Comment:  What does Joseph Stiglitz have to say?

That’s a question we ask when we are faced with difficult issues such as the current financial crisis, and what we should do about the troubled banks. To our benefit, Amy Goodman did ask him, and we learn what he has to say.

At the end of the interview, Amy Goodman tacked on this crucial question regarding our health care crisis. Single payer?

Joseph Stiglitz’s response must be shared with the nation, and especially with those in Washington who say that single payer is not feasible. We should inundate Washington with his statement that single payer is “the only alternative.” 

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