Unbiased Analysis of Today's Healthcare Issues
The answer is ‘yes’ according to a paper by French (2023):. The authors use data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) as well as high-frequency returns data for the S&P 500. The study finds that: …a one standard deviation increase in cumulative [negative wealth] shocks over two years increases the probability of elevated blood…
According to a recent paper by Stephens and Toohey (2022), the answer is ‘yes’. This paper examines the labor market effects of a randomized health intervention of working-age men that was focused on reducing mortality due to coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. MRFIT succeeded in improving the health…
A number of studies have found that economic growth (in the short-run) has adverse affects on individual’s health and economic downturns actually cause health improvements. During an economic downturn, individuals work less, sleep more and reduce their alcohol and cigarette usage; all these actions have a salutatory effects on health. For working adults, recessions decreased…
ForeSee released a study showing which kinds of healthcare-oriented websites do the best job satisfying customers. Their results show health insurance websites have dismal customer satisfaction compared to other kinds of healthcare sites (such as pharmaceutical sites, hospital websites, health information sites, etc.). A summary of the overall customer satisfaction rates are below. Health Information…
According to Avalere Health the people who will be added to Medicaid through healthcare reform are more sick — and therefore will be more expensive to treat — than current beneficiaries. This chart below uses data from the 2008 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) to demonstrate this point.
What factors predict how long we live? What are the best ways to forestall death? The determinants of premature death are 40% behavoiral, 30% genetic, but only 10% medical care. It is important to remember that medical care and health are far from synonomous.
A recent JHE article by Park and Kang wonder if more education induces people to have a healthier lifestyle. They use data on Korean men to see if this is the case. They find that “an increase in education induces individuals to exercise regularly, and to get regular health checkups…[but]…education has little effect on smoking…
While your wallet may be a little lighter and your 401(k) may have taken a beating, the economic downturn may actually improve your health. The N.Y. Times reports that “people tend not to take care of themselves in boom times — drinking too much (especially before driving), dining on fat-laden restaurant meals and skipping exercise…
Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo find that for rural households, the probability that the mother is alive is 36 percentage points higher if the family has a daily per capita expenditures (DPCE) of $6 to $10 versus a DCPE of $1 to $2. Using a panel data set specification, the authors also find that adults…
A recent paper by Franco et al. (2007) claims that increased poverty may improve health (see also NPR’s Marketplace report). How is this possible? Lower income reduces excess food as well as cigarette consumption. Further, poverty makes public transportation less affordable and individuals may substitute walking for taking the bus. The authors study Cuba’s experience…