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Including health insurance in poverty measurement: The impact of Massachusetts health reform on poverty

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  • Korenman, Sanders D.
  • Remler, Dahlia K.

Abstract

We develop and implement what we believe is the first conceptually valid health-inclusive poverty measure (HIPM) – a measure that includes health care or insurance in the poverty needs threshold and health insurance benefits in family resources – and we discuss its limitations. Building on the Census Bureau's Supplemental Poverty Measure, we construct a pilot HIPM for the under-65 population under ACA-like health reform in Massachusetts. This pilot demonstrates the practicality, face validity and value of a HIPM. Results suggest that public health insurance benefits and premium subsidies accounted for a substantial, one-third reduction in the health inclusive poverty rate.

Suggested Citation

  • Korenman, Sanders D. & Remler, Dahlia K., 2016. "Including health insurance in poverty measurement: The impact of Massachusetts health reform on poverty," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 27-35.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jhecon:v:50:y:2016:i:c:p:27-35
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2016.09.002
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Bruce D. Meyer & Derek Wu, 2018. "The Poverty Reduction of Social Security and Means-Tested Transfers," NBER Working Papers 24567, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Jingjing Zhou & Yaoyu Zhang & Yong Sha & Jianfang Zhou & Hang Ren & Xin Shen & Hui Xu, 2022. "The Effect of the “Triple-Layer Medical Security” Policy on the Vulnerability as Expected Poverty of Rural Households: Evidence from Yunnan Province, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-22, October.
    3. Burkhauser, Richard V. & Corinth, Kevin & Elwell, James & Larrimore, Jeff, 2019. "Evaluating the Success of President Johnson's War on Poverty: Revisiting the Historical Record Using a Full-Income Poverty Measure," IZA Discussion Papers 12855, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Richard V. Burkhauser & Kevin Corinth & James Elwell & Jeff Larrimore, 2019. "Evaluating the Success of President Johnson’s War on Poverty: Revisiting the Historical Record Using an Absolute Full-Income Poverty Measure," NBER Working Papers 26532, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Haiyan Jia & Xiaoyu Sai & Yangyue Su & Ying Huang, 2022. "Measurement and Decomposition of the Health Poverty of Rural Residents in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-20, October.
    6. Korenman, Sanders & Remler, Dahlia K. & Hyson, Rosemary T., 2021. "Health insurance and poverty of the older population in the United States: The importance of a health inclusive poverty measure," The Journal of the Economics of Ageing, Elsevier, vol. 18(C).
    7. Yuhua Li & Xiheng Gong & Jingyi Zhang & Ziwei Xiang & Chengjun Liao, 2022. "The Impact of Mobile Payment on Household Poverty Vulnerability: A Study Based on CHFS2017 in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(21), pages 1-20, October.
    8. Sanders Korenman & Dahlia K. Remler & Rosemary T. Hyson, 2019. "Accounting for the Impact of Medicaid on Child Poverty," NBER Working Papers 25973, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Zou, Wei & Cheng, Bo, 2023. "Can rural health insurance coverage improve educational attainment? Evidence from new cooperative medical scheme in China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 689-704.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Poverty measurement; Health insurance; Affordable Care Act; Health reform; Poverty;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I13 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Insurance, Public and Private
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty

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