Durably improving health is really, really hard. I've discussed this in the context of drug discovery, which must contend with the ever-more-apparent reality that biology is incredibly complex, and science remarkably fragile. Here, I'd like to focus on another challenge: measuring and improving the quality of patient care.

At the NATO summit in Chicago, the much hoped-for deal between the United States and Pakistan to reopen NATO supply routes through Pakistan did not materialize. The experience of the closure and the negotiations has laid bare the changed relationship between the U.S. and Pakistan.

AEI economist and tax expert Alan Viard says the proposed legislation to extend the Bush tax cuts for the middle class while allowing the cuts to expire for high-income earners would cause the most damage to the economy.

The Obama adminstration's decision to move forward with the Korea free trade agreement represents a sharp break from a deliberately ambiguous trade policy and may mark a welcome return to U.S. trade leadership if the administration can overcome political obstacles to see it through.

Wednesday and Thursday mark Egypt’s first post-Mubarak presidential elections. Sadly, what should be a purple-fingered moment brings some hope and much disappointment. Don’t get me wrong – Mubarak was a loathsome stooge, a petty and incompetent rentier tyrant who deserved what he got and more.

If I had my druthers, I would cut to the chase and go for the Healthy Americans Act, the brainchild of Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) that has substantial bipartisan support in both the House and Senate.

The United States and its allies and partners must not only understand Iran’s regional strategy and influence but also develop a coherent strategy of their own with which to confront them. Considering the relative economic, political, and diplomatic power of the two sides, it is unacceptable for the United States and its allies to allow Iran even such progress as it has made in these realms.

When the G8 major economies convened at Camp David last weekend, the continuing crisis of the euro, common currency of 17 European Union (EU) members, dominated the economic discussions. The agonies of Greece, badly divided in recent parliamentary elections, and forced to vote again on 17 June, were at the forefront.