What do we mean when we say something is unaffordable?
Economist Dr Bill Rosenberg recently challenged claims that New Zealand Superannuation is becoming unaffordable, arguing that large numbers alone don't tell the full story.
His point is that affordability needs context. Costs need to be considered alongside the size of the economy, government revenue, and the resources available to us as a country.
While Bill's article is about superannuation, the same question comes up again and again in healthcare.
We hear that hospitals are under pressure, that services can't expand, or that funding is limited. But before accepting that something is unaffordable, it's worth asking how that conclusion has been reached and what assumptions sit behind it.
Healthcare advocates have long argued that underinvestment comes with costs of its own like longer wait times, workforce shortages, poorer health outcomes and growing pressure on already stretched services.
The question isn't whether we can afford public services but whether we can afford not to fund them properly.
Bill's article is a useful reminder that affordability is often as much about priorities as it is about economics.