[[{“type”:“media”,“view_mode”:“media_large”,“fid”:null,“attributes”:{“class”:“media-image alignright size-full wp-image-26319”,“typeof”:“foaf:Image”,“style”:“”,“width”:“100”,“height”:“100”,“alt”:“The Hospitalist”}}]]With much of the national discussion on healthcare policy still dominated by the Affordable Care Act, which was signed into law March 23, 2010, it’s easy to forget that the healthcare industry received a big influx of money through 2009’s federal stimulus. In all, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act gave the go-ahead for roughly $160 billion in new health-related spending.

James Feyrer, associate professor of economics and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, says the stimulus’ support for low-income households yielded more than two dollars for every dollar spent. The key question, Feyrer says, is whether government spending changes behavior.

Read the full story, published in the December 2011 issue of The Hospitalist.