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Alternative Models of Choice under Uncertainty and Demand for Health Insurance

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  • Marquis, M Susan
  • Holmer, Martin R

Abstract

The authors test a standard expected utility model and alternative models about how people evaluate risky prospects using data about individuals' preferences among health insurance plans. A model that assumes people evaluate gains and losses relative to a reference rather than final outcomes, treat gains and losses asymmetrically, and process certain and uncertain outcomes separately provides a better fit than the standard utility model. These findings suggest inertia in health insurance plan choice and that individuals are more responsive to decreases than to increases in the price of insurance. Copyright 1996 by MIT Press.

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  • Marquis, M Susan & Holmer, Martin R, 1996. "Alternative Models of Choice under Uncertainty and Demand for Health Insurance," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 78(3), pages 421-427, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:tpr:restat:v:78:y:1996:i:3:p:421-27
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Attema, Arthur E. & Brouwer, Werner B.F. & l’Haridon, Olivier, 2013. "Prospect theory in the health domain: A quantitative assessment," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 1057-1065.
    2. Lee, Carmen & Kräussl, Roman & Lucas, André & Paas, Leo, 2010. "Why do investors sell losers? How adaptation to losses affects future capitulation decisions," CFS Working Paper Series 2010/23, Center for Financial Studies (CFS).
    3. Dhami, Sanjit & al-Nowaihi, Ali, 2013. "An extension of the Becker proposition to non-expected utility theory," Mathematical Social Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 65(1), pages 10-20.
    4. repec:dgr:rugsom:00e44 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. David J. Vanness, 2003. "A structural econometric model of family valuation and choice of employer‐sponsored health insurance in the United States," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 12(9), pages 771-790, September.
    6. Fernando Ruiz & Liliana Amaya & Stella Venegas, 2007. "Progressive segmented health insurance: Colombian health reform and access to health services," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 16(1), pages 3-18, January.
    7. Pfarr, Christian & Schmid, Andreas, 2013. "The political economics of social health insurance: the tricky case of individuals’ preferences," MPRA Paper 44534, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Charles E. Phelps, 2023. "Optimal health insurance," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 90(1), pages 213-241, March.
    9. Manning, Willard G. & Marquis, M. Susan, 1996. "Health insurance: The tradeoff between risk pooling and moral hazard," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(5), pages 609-639, October.
    10. Bo, H. & Lensink, R., 2000. "Is the investment-uncertainty relationship non-linear? : an emperical [i.e. empirical] analysis for the Netherlands," Research Report 00E44, University of Groningen, Research Institute SOM (Systems, Organisations and Management).
    11. Kiil, Astrid, 2012. "Private health insurance and the use of health care services - a review of the theoretical literature with application to voluntary private health insurance in universal health care systems," DaCHE discussion papers 2012:1, University of Southern Denmark, Dache - Danish Centre for Health Economics.
    12. Drevs Florian & Nguyen Tristan, 2012. "Adverse Selektion light – Der Einfluss des Flat-Rate-Bias auf das Tarifwahlverhalten bei Krankenversicherungen / Adverse Selection Light – How can flat-rate bias influence insurance demand," ORDO. Jahrbuch für die Ordnung von Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft, De Gruyter, vol. 63(1), pages 365-382, January.
    13. Janssen, Aljoscha & Kasinger, Johannes, 2021. "Obfuscation and rational inattention in digitalized markets," SAFE Working Paper Series 306, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE.
    14. Irma Machielse & Danielle Timmermans & Peter Wakker, 2007. "The effects of statistical information on risk ambiguity attitudes, and on rational insurance decisions," Natural Field Experiments 00338, The Field Experiments Website.
    15. Lin, Boqiang & Li, Minyang, 2022. "Understanding the investment of renewable energy firms in the face of economic policy uncertainty – Micro-evidence from listed companies in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    16. Jean Marie Abraham & William B. Vogt & Martin Gaynor, 2002. "Household Demand for Employer-Based Health Insurance," NBER Working Papers 9144, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Vo, Thang T. & Van, Pham Hoang, 2019. "Can health insurance reduce household vulnerability? Evidence from Viet Nam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 1-1.
    18. Keeler, Emmett B. & Carter, Grace & Newhouse, Joseph P., 1998. "A model of the impact of reimbursement schemes on health plan choice," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(3), pages 297-320, June.
    19. Sidorenko, Alexandra, 2001. "Stochastic Model of Demand for Medical Care with Endogenous Labour Supply and Health Insurance," Departmental Working Papers 2001-08, The Australian National University, Arndt-Corden Department of Economics.
    20. Peter P. Wakker & Daniëlle R. M. Timmermans & Irma Machielse, 2007. "The Effects of Statistical Information on Risk and Ambiguity Attitudes, and on Rational Insurance Decisions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 53(11), pages 1770-1784, November.
    21. Janssen, Aljoscha & Kasinger, Johannes, 2021. "Obfuscation and Rational Inattention in Digitalized Markets," Working Paper Series 1379, Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
    22. Kobberling, Veronika & Wakker, Peter P., 2005. "An index of loss aversion," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 122(1), pages 119-131, May.

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