Newt Gingrich, from his new book, as quoted in the New York Times review:

"We must transform the health system so people can live longer and healthier lives while taking 20 percent out of the cost of the system. We can achieve this through the efficiencies of information technology, and by the kind of waste reduction and productivity increases that have been common in manufacturing for the last 30 years and in service industries for the last 15 years."

OK, Newt -- how would we apply "the kind of waste reduction and productivity increases" that we see elsewhere in the economy to medicine?

Pay all American health care workers $8.50 an hour? Outsource all operations to Bangalore? Put bar codes on all internal organs?