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First Do No Harm?: Tort Reform and Birth Outcomes

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Author Info
Janet Currie
W. Bentley MacLeod

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Abstract

We examine the impact of tort reforms using U.S. birth records for 1989-2001. We make four contributions: First, we develop a model that analyzes the incentives created by specific tort reforms. Second, we assemble new data on tort reform. Third, we examine a range of outcomes. Finally, we allow for differential effects by demographic/risk group. We find that reforms of the "deep pockets rule" reduce complications of labor and C-sections, while caps on noneconomic damages increase them. Our results demonstrate there are important interactions between incentives created by tort law and other incentives facing physicians.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 12478.

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Date of creation: Aug 2006
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:12478

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Production
I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
K13 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law - - - Tort Law and Product Liability

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Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Currie, Janet & Gruber, Jonathan & Fischer, Michael, 1995. "Physician Payments and Infant Mortality: Evidence from Medicaid Fee Policy," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(2), pages 106-11, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  2. Browne, Mark J & Puelz, Robert, 1999. "The Effect of Legal Rules on the Value of Economic and Non-economic Damages and the Decision to File," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 18(2), pages 189-213, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Jon Gruber & John Kim & Dina Mayzlin, 1998. "Physician Fees and Procedure Intensity: The Case of Cesarean Delivery," NBER Working Papers 6744, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Janet Currie & Enrico Moretti, 2003. "Mother'S Education And The Intergenerational Transmission Of Human Capital: Evidence From College Openings," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 118(4), pages 1495-1532, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Currie, Janet & Gruber, Jonathan, 2001. "Public health insurance and medical treatment: the equalizing impact of the Medicaid expansions," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 82(1), pages 63-89, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Danzon, Patricia M, 1991. "Liability for Medical Malpractice," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 5(3), pages 51-69, Summer. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. Daniel P. Kessler & Mark McClellan, 1996. "Do Doctors Practice Defensive Medicine?," NBER Working Papers 5466, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Steven Shavell, 2003. "Economic Analysis of Accident Law," NBER Working Papers 9694, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Kessler, Daniel & McClellan, Mark, 1996. "Do Doctors Practice Defensive Medicine?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 111(2), pages 353-90, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Jonathan Gruber & Maria Owings, 1996. "Physician Financial Incentives and Cesarean Section Delivery," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 27(1), pages 99-123, Spring. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  11. Sloan, Frank A. & Entman, Stephen S. & Reilly, Bridget A. & Glass, Cheryl A. & Hickson, Gerald B. & Zhang, Harold H., 1997. "Tort liability and obstetricians' care levels," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 245-260, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  12. Danzon, Patricia M & Pauly, Mark V & Kington, Raynard S, 1990. "The Effects of Malpractice Litigation on Physicians' Fees and Incomes," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 80(2), pages 122-27, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  13. Jennifer Arlen & W. Bentley MacLeod, 2005. "Torts, Expertise, and Authority: Liability of Physicians and Managed Care Organizations," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 36(3), pages 494-519, Autumn.
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  14. Dubay, Lisa & Kaestner, Robert & Waidmann, Timothy, 1999. "The impact of malpractice fears on cesarean section rates," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 491-522, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Douglas Almond & Kenneth Y. Chay & David S. Lee, 2005. "The Costs of Low Birth Weight," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 120(3), pages 1031-1083, August.
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Anca Cotet, 2009. "TQuantity versus Quality in Medical Care: Evidence from State Variation in Telemedicine Regulation," Working Papers 200902, Ball State University, Department of Economics, revised Feb 2009. [Downloadable!]
  2. Anca Cotet, 2009. "Tort Reform and the Demand for Medical Care: Evidence from State-by-State Variation in Non-Economic Damages Caps," Working Papers 200901, Ball State University, Department of Economics, revised Jan 2009. [Downloadable!]
  3. Darius N. Lakdawalla & Seth A. Seabury, 2009. "The Welfare Effects of Medical Malpractice Liability," NBER Working Papers 15383, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Daniel Carvell & Janet Currie & W. Bentley MacLeod, 2009. "Accidental Death and the Rule of Joint and Several Liability," NBER Working Papers 15412, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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This page was last updated on 2009-11-25.

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