Voters’ response to in-kind transfers: Quasi-experimental evidence from prescription drug cost-sharing in Brazil

M. Christian Lehmann and Hellen Matarazzo

Economics Letters, 2019, vol. 184, issue C

Abstract: In metropolitan areas the Brazilian government provides drugs against hypertension and diabetes for free, and against other diseases 90 percent below market price. A city’s eligibility for these in-kind transfers changes exogenously at given city population thresholds. We compare vote shares of mayors around these thresholds. Regression discontinuity estimates suggest that the program increases incumbent mayors’ vote shares between 11 and 17 percentage points. This is larger than the electoral return of cash transfer programs reported by the existing literature, lending support to theories that in-kind transfers get more voter support despite being less cost-effective.

Keywords: Elections; In-kind transfers; Health policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 H72 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:184:y:2019:i:c:s0165176519303027

DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2019.108614

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