Figure 1From: Consumer access to health information on the internet: health policy implicationsAsymmetric information and market failure. MSB = marginal social benefit, MPB = marginal private benefit, MSC = marginal social cost, MPC = marginal private cost. In this example, the uninformed market demand curve lies to the right of and above the informed demand curve. Market equilibrium is inefficient and results in consumers paying a higher price and consuming more than if they were fully informed.Back to article page