The Mortality Effects of Winter Heating Prices

Janjala Chirakijja, Seema Jayachandran and Pinchuan Ong
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Janjala Chirakijja: Monash University
Pinchuan Ong: National University of Singapore Business School

Working Papers from Princeton University, Department of Economics, Center for Economic Policy Studies.

Abstract: This paper examines how the price of home heating affects mortality in the US. Exposure to cold is one reason that mortality peaks in winter, and a higher heating price increases exposure to cold by reducing heating use. Our empirical approach combines spatial variation in the energy source used for home heating and temporal variation in the national prices of natural gas and electricity. We find that a lower heating price reduces winter mortality, driven mostly by cardiovascular and respiratory causes. Our estimates imply that the 42% drop in the natural gas price in the late 2000s, mostly driven by the shale gas boom, averted 12,500 deaths per year in the US. The effect appears to be especially large in high-poverty communities.

Keywords: Mortality; Home Heating; Heating Prices (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I30 I31 I39 Q41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dem, nep-des, nep-ene, nep-hea, nep-sea and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Related works:
Journal Article: The Mortality Effects of Winter Heating Prices (2024)
Journal Article: The Mortality Effects of Winter Heating Prices (2023)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pri:cepsud:305

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