COVER

The Long Goodbye (Nation)

For five months, I was my parents' death panel. And where the costly chaos of Medicare failed, a team of salaried doctors and nurses offered a better way

Joe Klein on His Cover Story

VIDEO: Joe Klein talks about how his parents' deaths taught him about the flaws in the fee-for-service health care system

COMMENTARY

BUSINESS

King Coal's Comeback (Sustainability)

Asia needs coal, and the U.S. has plenty. Will expanding exports make climate change that much worse?

THE CULTURE

Into the Void (Movies)

Prometheus dives into a dangerous genre--the space opera

Strong-Armed (Sports)

Olympian Sarah Robles raises the bar for plus-size women

Date Night, Notarized (The Awesome Column)

A lesson in relationship management from Facebook's royal newlyweds

My So-Called Wife (Books)

A crackling thriller about marriage in a house of mirrors

FEATURES

Mo Joe (Nation)

How the bear-hugging, pain-feeling, close-talking, heart-on-his-sleeve Vice President became the Obama campaign's not-so-secret weapon

Last Dance (Society)

For kids and communities across America, prom night is both a rite of passage and a sign of the times

American Proms

PHOTOS: Gillian Laub crossed the country to capture the bittersweet anticipation and excitement of high-school proms for TIME

BRIEFING

Retirement Repair (Game Changer)

Don't have a pension? Fear not. New 401(k) plans could make you feel like you do

The Survivor (Campaign Memo)

How Scott Walker went to war on his recall

Busted! (Economy)

How the IPO market can grow from the Facebook fiasco

LETTERS