Had a great session today with David Cutler, who talked us through key issues in American health care.

About 15% of Americans, some 45 million people, are not covered by health insurance, and this number increases each year. One of the key factors in this is the rising cost of insurance premiums - while another factor is the undoubtedly the decline of the US trade union movement, which in turn has reduced the pressure on employers to provide health insurance.

You can read more about David Cutler's analysis of the US health care system, and the hard choices ahead for policy makers and public alike, here.