Michael J. Gerson explores the effects of the economic hardship on physical, mental and moral health.

Supporters of genetically engineered food tout it as a boon at a time of global food shortages, but some critics see signs that modified foods may do more harm than good.

Health experts agree the U.S. health care system needs an overhaul, as a way of shoring up the economy and U.S. competitiveness. But a battle is brewing over the president-elect's designs for a public-sponsored insurance plan.

Listen to Michael T. Osterholm, director of research and policy at the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease, discuss the need for pandemic preparedness and offer suggestions for a detailed response strategy involving the public and private sectors as part of CFR's State and Local Officials Conference Call Series.

Learn more about CFR's State and Local Officials Initiative.

A Council on Foreign Relations panel discussion on the presidential candidates' plans for taxes, health care, and tackling the financial crisis.

Michael Gerson considers the differences in Sen. McCain and Sen. Obama's tactics on healthcare.

In this report, the RAND Corporation discusses psychological and cognitive injuries from war, their consequences, and services to assist recovery.

As concerns grow over the increasing scarcity of fresh water, some experts weigh trading it as a commodity.

With the number of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans already at 1.6 million, soldiers’ advocates say a new U.S. health care crisis looms.  

The collection of essays focusing on different concerns about vaccine prioritization.

With the volume of illegal immigrants flowing across the U.S. border fueling an emotional debate in Washington, the impact of immigration policy on foreign health workers has been overshadowed.

The population of western Europe is aging steadily, and the region's birthrate is well below the replacement level, but Europe's elderly are exceptionally healthy. That means they could be more productive for longer than their predecessors were. If western European governments learn to tap this potential, healthy aging could become the region's next great economic asset.

Listen to Michael T. Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, and author of the recent Foreign Affairs article, "Unprepared for a Pandemic", discuss the current threat of the pandemic flu as part of CFR's State and Local Officials Conference Call Series.

Learn more about CFR's State and Local Officials Initiative.

Recent discoveries related to avian flu could help control a possible future pandemic, but even as the global community and individual countries develop plans to combat the virus, experts say more work needs to be done.

In October 2006, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued this call for emergency food aid to North Korea to be maintained despite the country’s alleged nuclear test.