Household Income and Spending in the United States During the 1918 Influenza Pandemic

Johan Fourie and Johannes Norling
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Johannes Norling: Department of Economics, Mount Holyoke College, United States

CAGE Online Working Paper Series from Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE)

Abstract: How did the 1918 influenza outbreak, the deadliest pandemic of the twentieth century, affect household income and spending in the United States? Using the 1917–1919 BLS cost of living survey, we compare households in 99 cities observed at different stages of the pandemic. We find a six percent decrease in real income, driven by cities with higher mortality. Men’s wages fell, but more women worked. People spent less on nondurable goods and services, about the same on durables, and more on medicine. Spending varied by region, age, and affluence. Government imposed non-pharmaceutical interventions had little correlation with consumer behavior.

Keywords: Spanish flu; Pandemic; Income; Spending JEL Classification: N32; I18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea, nep-his and nep-isf
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cge:wacage:571

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