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An Economics question for everyone
Dancer
Community Champion Posts: 7,783 Master Poster
Today at school I had a taster lesson to do with Economics. This is a GCSE subject (GCSE is exam based and a BTEC is coursework with an exam at the end.) We had a question that we had to answer and nobody could come up with a suitable answer and an argument for it that was not just a "whatever" argument. So here is the question:
There is a shortage of lungs avaliable for people who need a lung transplant. 4 people need a lung transplant but there is only 1 set of lungs avaliable.
22 year old Joanna is a student with no children. She does not smoke.
32 year old Lisa is a cleaner with 2 children and a husband. She had to quit school early to support her poor family. She earns £12,000 a year so cannot afford private health care. She does not smoke.
37 year old Kate is a surgeon with a husband. She went to private school and a top university which her parents paid for. She was born to a rich family. She earns £250,000 a year so can afford private health care. She is a smoker who is not even thinking of quitting.
82 year old Margaret is a retired teacher with 4 grandchildren. She does not smoke.
Who would you give the lungs to and why? There are no right or wrong answers. It is all about how you explain it.
*All names have been changed and this a fictional case study.
There is a shortage of lungs avaliable for people who need a lung transplant. 4 people need a lung transplant but there is only 1 set of lungs avaliable.
22 year old Joanna is a student with no children. She does not smoke.
32 year old Lisa is a cleaner with 2 children and a husband. She had to quit school early to support her poor family. She earns £12,000 a year so cannot afford private health care. She does not smoke.
37 year old Kate is a surgeon with a husband. She went to private school and a top university which her parents paid for. She was born to a rich family. She earns £250,000 a year so can afford private health care. She is a smoker who is not even thinking of quitting.
82 year old Margaret is a retired teacher with 4 grandchildren. She does not smoke.
Who would you give the lungs to and why? There are no right or wrong answers. It is all about how you explain it.
*All names have been changed and this a fictional case study.
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"The way that I have found the light in my life is through the expressive arts because I know that I will be accepted for the way I am." ~ Me
"I'm going to get strong again and see you soon. " ~ Anonymous
Post edited by JustV on
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Comments
Also, they both cant afford it as the others would have savings and stuff.
Also Kate smokes
"I do what i do because it's right... and above all its KIND" - the 12th Doctor 💕
The joy is worth the pain.
I think this question is more a philosophical one than an economics problem though, because the choice only becomes complicated if you start applying ethics and stuff to it.
In terms of benefits:
- She earns the most money, which also means that she pays the most in tax too.
- She's the most educated, and works in the most technically challenging role of the four, so is considered a highly valuable skilled worker
- As a surgeon, she will save many more lives in her career
- As she can afford private healthcare, she doesn't rely as much on state support there, so is less of a burden on public services spending
In terms of opportunity costs:- She's the hardest to replace, as you'd need to fund a replacement person through university and specialist training in surgery.
In terms of the complication (here, smoking):So yeah, pretty solid case for saving her!