Gordon actually has some <i>really</i> good chapters on healthcare and medicine, among the very best parts of his book.  He&#x27;s also absolutely nuts with graphs and tables, and covers much of this in detail.<p>TL;DR: 2x the improvement of life expectency came <i>before</i> 1950 as after.  Medicine since 1970 has been expensive, high-tech, changed rapidly, and delivered very little.  Much the improved outcomes arises from improved access for the underserved, not radical treatments.  Genomics and stem cells are specifically and pointedly disappointing.