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Uwe Reinhardt, the renowned Princeton health economist, once labeled rationing as “the dreaded ‘R-word.’” Sarah Palin infamously criticized the Affordable Care Act for, in her view, setting up rationing “death panels.” Many others recoil from the idea of rationing, considering it a “heartless, mechanistic withholding of desirable goods or services by faceless bureaucrats.” In contrast, “resource allocation” does not typically inspire the same response. Why does the idea of rationing in health care generate such a negative emotional response? Is this response justified? Does rationing differ from resource allocation as a means of setting priorities for health care? Who has the authority to set priorities for health care? On what basis should priorities be set? Why must priorities be set at all? This class addresses questions like these and offers a broad introduction to the ethics of priority-setting in health care. The class will devote significant time to understanding both the conceptual and normative foundations of priority-setting as well as specific proposals for how to set priorities. We will explore priority-setting in health care at both the individual and population level through various case studies including organ transplants and flu pandemic preparation. We will discuss priority-setting in the context of public health and universal health coverage and explore the role of global organizations like the World Health Organization and World Bank in setting priorities for health care. We will also consider whether priority-setting is compatible with the pursuit of social justice. Gordis Teaching Fellowship course.