American Economic Journal:
Economic Policy
ISSN 1945-7731 (Print) | ISSN 1945-774X (Online)
Death by Market Power: Reform, Competition, and Patient Outcomes in the National Health Service
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
(pp. 134–66)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
The effect of competition on the quality of health care remains a contested issue. Most empirical estimates rely on inference from nonexperimental data. In contrast, this paper exploits a procompetitive policy reform to provide estimates of the impact of competition on hospital outcomes. The English government introduced a policy in 2006 to promote competition between hospitals. Using this policy to implement a difference-in-differences research design, we estimate the impact of the introduction of competition on not only clinical outcomes but also productivity and expenditure. We find that the effect of competition is to save lives without raising costs.Citation
Gaynor, Martin, Rodrigo Moreno-Serra, and Carol Propper. 2013. "Death by Market Power: Reform, Competition, and Patient Outcomes in the National Health Service." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 5 (4): 134–66. DOI: 10.1257/pol.5.4.134Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- H51 National Government Expenditures and Health
- I11 Analysis of Health Care Markets
- I18 Health: Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
- L32 Public Enterprises; Public-Private Enterprises
- L33 Comparison of Public and Private Enterprises and Nonprofit Institutions; Privatization; Contracting Out