Labor Market Effects of the Oxycodone-Heroin Epidemic

David Cho, Daniel Garcia, Joshua Montes and Alison E. Weingarden
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Joshua Montes: https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/joshua-k-montes.htm

No 2021-025, Finance and Economics Discussion Series from Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.)

Abstract: We estimate the causal effects of heroin use on labor market outcomes by proxying for heroin use with prior exposure to oxycodone, the largest of the prescription opioids with a well-documented history of abuse. After a nationwide tightening in the supply of oxycodone in 2010, states with greater prior exposure to oxycodone experienced much larger increases in heroin use and mortality. We find increases in heroin use led to declines in employment and labor force participation rates, particularly for white, young, and less educated groups, consistent with the profile of oxycodone misusers. The results show the importance of extending beyond prescriptions when accounting for the labor market effects of the opioid crisis.

Keywords: Labor force; Participation rate; Opioid crisis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I12 I18 J21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 41 p.
Date: 2021-04-14
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-lma
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:fip:fedgfe:2021-25

DOI: 10.17016/FEDS.2021.025

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