For more than 40 years, the federal government has conducted cost–benefit analysis on the effects of regulations in an effort to ensure that they do more good than harm. However, consistent underestimation of the opportunity cost of capital (how invested resources would appreciate in value over time) has made it too easy for regulations to pass a cost–benefit test. In “Rehabilitating the Opportunity Cost of Capital in Cost–Benefit Analysis,” James Broughel examines the limitations of the two main approaches to calculating this opportunity cost and outlines an alternative way forward.

The vast increase in demand for healthcare services in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic was, and continues to be, a problem for a growing number of Americans. Access to care is a serious policy challenge. One solution to this challenge is relaxing state scope-of-practice laws for nurse practitioners. Many states prevent nurse practitioners from caring for patients without supervision by a physician, citing concern for patient safety. In “Nursing the Opioid Crisis,” Benjamin J. McMichael refutes that claim.

Human biases are widespread and usually troublesome. Confirmation bias, for example, leads us to seek evidence and ideas that confirm our pre-existing views. We choose to interpret information to align with our strongly held opinions or beliefs. We are also strongly inclined toward conformity bias: Due to our innate desire to belong, we’re motivated to emulate or mimic behaviors that enable us to feel we’re part of a group. The combination of these two biases generates another phenomenon, epistemic tribalism, which is currently plaguing our liberal democracy.