Quantifying the Benefits of Social Insurance: Unemployment Insurance and Health

Elira Kuka

No 11629, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: While the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program is one of the largest safety net program in the U.S., research on its benefits is limited. This paper exploits plausibly exogenous changes in state UI laws to empirically estimate whether UI generosity mitigates any of the previously documented negative health effects of job loss. The results show higher UI generosity increases health insurance coverage and utilization, and leads to improved self-reported health. Moreover, these effects are stronger during periods of high unemployment rates. Finally, I find no effects on risky behaviors nor on health conditions.

Keywords: unemployment insurance; health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 57 pages
Date: 2018-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea, nep-ias and nep-lab
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (20)

Published - published: Review of Economics and Statistics, 2020, 102 (3), 490–505.

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Related works:
Journal Article: Quantifying the Benefits of Social Insurance: Unemployment Insurance and Health (2020)
Working Paper: Quantifying the Benefits of Social Insurance: Unemployment Insurance and Health (2018)
Working Paper: Quantifying the Benefits of Social Insurance: Unemployment Insurance and Health (2018)
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