The Republic of the Philippines began on the path to universal coverage with the passage of the National Health Insurance Act of 1995 (Republic Act 7875) which established the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) . Building on the Philippine Medicare program which began in 1971, PhilHealth has expanded coverage to more than 80% of the population with basic benefits, but accounts for only 10% of total health financing—wide population coverage with thin public benefits. An extensive system of private insurance provides additional benefits for high-income Filipino households. While the Philippines is pursuing a public insurance approach with private add-ons, Hawaii has mandated private employment-based coverage through the Pre-paid Health Care Act of 1974 and operates under a Congressionally granted ERISA exemption as well as an exemption from the Affordable Care Act of 2010. Combining the employer mandate with generous Medicaid and SCHIP programs, Hawaii has achieved a coverage rate exceeding 90% of the resident population with extensive benefit packages. The presenter will provide an overview of the two systems and present original research on the labor market effects and public insurance effects of the Hawaii system.

How will population aging impact the economies and social protection systems of Japan, South Korea, China, and India? This colloquium showcases research addressing that question by contributors to a new Shorenstein APARC book, Aging Asia, co-edited by Karen Eggleston and Shripad Tuljapurkar. Dr. Bloom discusses how aging of the baby boom generation, declines in fertility rates, and an increase in life expectancy imply several changes for the economies of the region. Notwithstanding the potential challenges, Bloom argues that population aging may have less of a negative effect on economic growth than some have predicted. Bloom will also discuss the longitudinal aging study in India.

David Bloom is Clarence James Gamble Professor of Economics and Demography at Harvard University, Chair of the Department of Global Health and Population at the Harvard School of Public Health, and Director of Harvard University’s Program on the Global Demography of Aging (funded by the National Institute of Aging). He is Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, where he serves as a member of three research programs: Labor Studies, Aging, and Health Economics. He co-chairs the Public Policy Committee of the American Foundation for AIDS Research. Bloom received a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University in 1976, an M.A. in Economics from Princeton University in 1978, and a Ph.D. in Economics and Demography from Princeton University in 1981.

The explosion of mobile phones into a region that, until recently, was nearly devoid of telecommunications infrastructure provides a valuable opportunity to explore the potential effects of information and communication technology on various economic

and social outcomes. This article focuses specifically on the potential influence that mobile phones will exert on corruption in Africa. Two distinct empirical analyses test the hypothesis that mobile phones will reduce corruption in Africa, as a result of decentralizing information and communication and thereby diminishing the opportunities available to engage in corruption as well as increasing the potential of detection and punishment. The results of a fixed effects regression of panel data at the country level reveal a significant negative correlation between a country's degree of mobile phone penetration and that country's level of perceived corruption. In addition to this, a multivariate regression of survey data reveals that the degree of mobile phone signal coverage across 13 Namibian provinces is significantly associated with reduced perceptions of corruption at the individual level.

Catie Snow Bailard received her doctorate in political science from UCLA, before joining the faculty of the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University in 2009. She graduated with concentrations in American Politics, Formal and Quantitative Methods, and International Relations. Throughout Catie's academic career, her research agenda has primarily focused on the intersection of telecommunications and politics. This fascination with the effect of mass media on political outcomes began in college as a major in UCLA's Communication Studies Department, a top-ranked undergraduate department. It was this experience that inspired Catie's decision to pursue a doctoral degree in political science at UCLA.  

 Studying under esteemed scholars in the field of political media studies at UCLA provided Catie with a broad substantive understanding of political communication as well as rigorous training in methodology. While the majority of early political communication research focused on television's impact on electoral outcomes in America, Catie's research agenda seeks to broaden this field.  By focusing on political outcomes beyond elections, beyond the American borders, as well as media technologies beyond television, Catie hopes to contribute to the evolution of political communication research to accommodate and effectively study the complex and rapidly-changing landscape of new media.  Catie's preferred approach to research is multi-methodological, with a particular preference for merging cutting edge quantitative analyses with randomized field experiments.

Michael Armacost recently gave a talk, examining the “rise” of China, at a gathering of international affairs experts. “How should we think of China,” asked Armacost, saying, “Some portray Beijing as a looming military threat; some regard it as our most promising global partner; some expect it to compete fiercely with us for global economic leadership.” Armacost looked at China’s military, trade, economics, and education in relation to the United States and shared thoughts for preparing the United States to become more competitive for the future.