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Alive and Kicking: Mortality of New Orleans Medicare Enrollees After Hurricane Katrina

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  • Robert Kaestner

Abstract

In a recent article in the American Economic Review, Tatyana Deryugina and David Molitor (DM) analyzed the effect of Hurricane Katrina on the mortality of elderly and disabled residents of New Orleans. The authors concluded that Hurricane Katrina improved the eight-year survival rate of elderly and disabled residents of New Orleans by 3 percent and that most of this decline in mortality was due to declines in mortality among those who moved to places with lower mortality. I provide a critical assessment of the evidence that DM provide to support their conclusions. There are three main problems. First, DM generally fail to account for the fact that people of different ages, races, or sexes will have different probabilities of dying as time goes by, and when they do allow for this, results change markedly. Second, DM do not account for the fact that aged residents in New Orleans are likely to be selected non-randomly on the basis of health because of the relatively high mortality rate in New Orleans compared to the rest of the country. Third, there is considerable evidence that among those who moved from New Orleans, the destination chosen was non-random. Finally, DM never compare changes in mortality of those who moved and those who stayed in a direct manner. These problems lead me to conclude that the evidence presented by DM does not support their inferences.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert Kaestner, 2021. "Alive and Kicking: Mortality of New Orleans Medicare Enrollees After Hurricane Katrina," Econ Journal Watch, Econ Journal Watch, vol. 18(1), pages 1-35–51, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:ejw:journl:v:18:y:2021:i:1:p:35-51
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kevin Callison & Robert Kaestner, 2014. "Do Higher Tobacco Taxes Reduce Adult Smoking? New Evidence Of The Effect Of Recent Cigarette Tax Increases On Adult Smoking," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 52(1), pages 155-172, January.
    2. Timothy G. Conley & Christopher R. Taber, 2011. "Inference with "Difference in Differences" with a Small Number of Policy Changes," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 93(1), pages 113-125, February.
    3. A. Colin Cameron & Douglas L. Miller, 2015. "A Practitioner’s Guide to Cluster-Robust Inference," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 317-372.
    4. Rocío Calvo & Mariana Arcaya & Christopher Baum & Sarah Lowe & Mary Waters, 2015. "Happily Ever After? Pre-and-Post Disaster Determinants of Happiness Among Survivors of Hurricane Katrina," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 427-442, April.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    health production; migration;

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • Q51 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Valuation of Environmental Effects
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming
    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population

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