Infant Mortality and the Repeal of Federal Prohibition

David Jacks, Krishna Pendakur and Hitoshi Shigeoka

No 23372, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Exploiting new data on county-level variation in alcohol prohibition from 1933 to 1939, we investigate whether the repeal of federal prohibition increased infant mortality, both in counties that repealed and in their neighboring counties. Using a binomial fixed-effects model, we find that repeal is associated with a 4.0% increase in infant mortality rates in counties that chose wet status via local option elections or state-wide legislation and with a 4.7% increase in neighboring dry counties, suggesting a role for cross-border policy externalities. Cumulatively, these estimates imply 26,960 infant deaths that could potentially be attributed to the repeal of federal prohibition.

JEL-codes: H73 I18 J1 N3 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-his
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Published as David S Jacks & Krishna Pendakur & Hitoshi Shigeoka, 2021. "Infant Mortality and the Repeal of Federal Prohibition," The Economic Journal, vol 131(639), pages 2955-2983.

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Journal Article: Infant Mortality and the Repeal of Federal Prohibition (2021)
Working Paper: Infant Mortality and the Repeal of Federal Prohibition (2017)
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