2018

commentary

Medicare for All: Sounds Good, but What Does It Mean?

Traditional Medicare is popular and therefore can lend a good brand name to coverage expansion proposals, but its limits can be significant for some patients. Those proposing and evaluating “Medicare for All” proposals should consider whether and how these limits are addressed.

David Anderson, Jodi L. Liu @jodilliu, et al.

blog

Mental Health, Gun Policy, Teen Vaping: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on helping kids cope with trauma, a new research initiative on guns in America, increasing mental health awareness in L.A., and more.

commentary

Building a Pipeline of Wargaming Talent: A Two-Track Solution

How does the Department of Defense imagine the future of war and make long-term investments to confront the challenges ahead? On issues ranging from potential conflicts with Russia to the future of transportation and logistics, senior leaders have increasingly turned to wargames to imagine potential futures.

Elizabeth M. Bartels @elliebartels

commentary

Berlin Protests Highlight Need for Sound Employment Discrimination Laws in Germany

Germany has a legal tradition and a strong constitution that promotes equality for all those living within its borders. That tradition could end up being a factor as German policymakers consider whether it is advantageous for the nation as a whole that the newest members of its society should have the necessary legal protections to succeed socially and economically.

Laura Kupe

commentary

Could America Use Its Leverage to Alter the Saudis' Behavior?

As the Saudis' chief political and military partner and the undisputed security guarantor in the Middle East, the United States has considerable influence it can wield over Saudi decisionmaking. The Trump administration could consider using its influence to encourage Saudi leadership to moderate its assertive and damaging policies abroad.

Ariane M. Tabatabai, Becca Wasser

commentary

How U.S. Gun Laws Allow Mass Shooters to Slip Through

The three most lethal domestic terrorist attacks since 9/11 were carried out with high-capacity semiautomatic weapons. None of the attackers were under 21 or were stoppable through criminal background checks. Restrictions on sales of semiautomatics would make it much harder for terrorists to obtain their most effective means of killing.

Benjamin Bahney

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Reflecting on the Past to Counter Future Terrorism

One Night with RAND brought together leaders in business, government, academia, and philanthropy to pay tribute to Brian Michael Jenkins and mark his 50-year affiliation with RAND and his substantial body of research on terrorism. Jenkins and other experts discussed the evolution of terrorism and strategies for countering it in the future.

commentary

What Does America's Political Polarization Mean for Competition with China?

Political polarization in the United States potentially carries significant implications for America's strategic competition with China. Leaders in Washington will need to work to mitigate the effects of polarization and manage competition with China in a stable, effective manner.

Timothy R. Heath

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Veterans, Infrastructure, Middle East: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the challenges facing veterans and their loved ones, a chance for bipartisan infrastructure policy, realignment in the Middle East, and more.

commentary

The Case for Investing in a More Healthy and Engaged Health Workforce

Improving staff engagement leads to a variety of positive benefits. But defining and measuring engagement is not straightforward, and different demographic factors are associated with different levels of engagement. The National Health Service in England is looking at ways to increase engagement in its staff.

Christian Van Stolk, Marco Hafner

commentary

Finding the Right Assessment Tool: Another Resource for Educators and Researchers

To teach something effectively, educators need to determine whether their instructional approaches are working, and make adjustments to those approaches as needed. The Assessment Work Group and RAND have developed tools to assist educators in finding and using assessments to measure social and emotional learning and higher-order cognitive competencies.

Laura S. Hamilton, Brian M. Stecher

essay

How Private Health Care Providers Could Better Serve Veterans

Almost a third of U.S. veterans live 40 miles or more from the nearest VA medical center, so the VA is trying to make it easier for them to use private providers closer to home. But it will take significant efforts to better prepare civilian doctors to deliver high-quality care to veterans.

commentary

On Nurse Staffing Ballot Measure, Massachusetts Voters Should Look to Evidence from California

Massachusetts residents will soon vote on the Patient Safety Act, a mandate to increase nurse-to-patient ratios in acute care facilities. Evaluating existing data on the impact of a similar nurse staffing law implemented in California in 2004 may help inform voters as they head to the polls.

Mahshid Abir, Jason E. Goldstick, et al.

commentary

The New AV Challenge: Creating a Universal Safety Framework

Autonomous vehicle developers are pursuing different safety strategies and technologies, making different claims, in different ways, about their systems. A universal framework could provide a more consistent and transparent view of progress in AV safety within and across the industry, better informing the public and policymakers.

Marjory S. Blumenthal @MarjorySB

blog

Tree of Life, Social Media, Korea: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, countering Russian social media influence, how Korea could unify, and more.