The Returns to Early-life Interventions for Very Low Birth Weight Children

Eric Chyn, Samantha Gold and Justine S. Hastings

No 25753, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: We use comprehensive administrative data from Rhode Island to measure the impact of early-life interventions for low birth weight newborns on later-life outcomes. We use a regression discontinuity design based on the 1,500-gram threshold for Very Low Birth Weight (VLBW) status. We show that threshold crossing causes more intense in-hospital care, in line with prior studies. Threshold crossing also causes a 0.34 standard deviation increase in test scores in elementary and middle school, a 17.1 percentage point increase in the probability of college enrollment, and $66,997 decrease in social program expenditures by age 14. We explore potential mechanisms driving these impacts.

JEL-codes: H53 I1 I12 I14 I18 I21 I24 J13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-ure
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

Published as Chyn, Eric & Gold, Samantha & Hastings, Justine, 2021. "The returns to early-life interventions for very low birth weight children," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).

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Journal Article: The returns to early-life interventions for very low birth weight children (2021)
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