The Effects of State Medicaid Expansions for Working-Age Adults on Senior Medicare Beneficiaries
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
vol. 9,
no. 3, August 2017
(pp. 408-38)
Abstract
Do Medicaid expansions to working-age adults affect healthcare spending and utilization among older Medicare beneficiaries? Although economic theory provides conflicting predictions about the presence and direction of such spillover effects, it does identify circumstances when spillovers can reduce Medicare spending. Using data on Medicaid expansions during the 2000s and microdata from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey, we find that a 1 percentage point rise in the share of working-age adults eligible for Medicaid has modest effects on the average Medicare beneficiary's spending, but reduces average spending by $477 among dual eligibles. Importantly, we find no evidence of adverse health effects.Citation
McInerney, Melissa, Jennifer M. Mellor, and Lindsay M. Sabik. 2017. "The Effects of State Medicaid Expansions for Working-Age Adults on Senior Medicare Beneficiaries." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 9 (3): 408-38. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20150402Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- G22 Insurance; Insurance Companies; Actuarial Studies
- H75 State and Local Government: Health; Education; Welfare; Public Pensions
- I12 Health Behavior
- I13 Health Insurance, Public and Private
- I18 Health: Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
- I38 Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty: Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
- J14 Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-labor Market Discrimination
There are no comments for this article.
Login to Comment