RECOMMENDATIONS. Pharmaceutical policy is toweringly important for containing costs, improving our health, and saving the lives of millions in the third-world. Health care delivery policy (insurance, in other words) often dominates the conversation, but there's a fair argument to be made that pharmaceutical policy is actually more important. On that note, I can't recommend Arnold Relman's examination of the pharmaceutical industry highly enough. It's too good, and too comprehensive, for me to have much to say about it, but I think it's one of the most important and useful health policy articles I've read in years. Read that and, if you're interested in the subject, Marcia Angell's New York Review of Books article on The Truth About Drug Companies. It's important stuff, and both pieces are marvels of clear, opinionated, long-form policy writing by experts in the field. --Ezra Klein
