Open AccessHow do changes in income, employment and health insurance affect family mental health spending?
Author(s) -
Irina B. Grafova,
Alan C. Monheit,
Rizie Kumar
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
review of economics of the household
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.791
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 1573-7152
pISSN - 1569-5239
DOI - 10.1007/s11150-018-9436-y
Subject(s) - medical expenditure panel survey , mental health , demographic economics , affect (linguistics) , economics , panel data , health spending , health insurance , labour economics , psychology , health care , econometrics , economic growth , psychiatry , communication
Using eight two-year panels from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data for the period 2004 to 2012, we examine the effect of economic shocks on mental health spending by families with children. Estimating two-part expenditure models within the correlated random effects framework, we find that employment shocks have a greater impact on mental health spending than do income or health insurance shocks. Our estimates reveal that employment gains are associated with a lower likelihood of family mental health services utilization. By contrast employment losses are positively related to an increase in total family mental health. We do not detect a link between economic shocks and mental health spending on behalf of fathers.