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The Effect of Alcohol Access on Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Evidence From the Minimum Legal Drinking Age

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  • Vijetha Koppa

    (Department of Economics and Finance, Stephen F. Austin State University. The findings of this paper reflect the views of the author alone and not of any other organization koppav@sfasu.edu Author email: koppav@sfasu.edu)

Abstract

This paper evaluates the effect of alcohol use on the spread of sexually transmitted diseases by exploiting the discrete change in legal access to alcohol at the minimum legal drinking age of 21 years. With administrative data from California, I implement a regression discontinuity model to compare the number of gonorrhea cases in men—an infection with a short incubation period of two weeks or less—contracted just before and after the 21st birthday. Results show no evidence of an increase in STDs in the overall population, or within racial and county subgroups with the highest infection rates. These results suggest that the relationship between alcohol and STDs, which is conventionally believed to be causal, is more likely to be driven by unobserved heterogeneity, at least among the college-age population.

Suggested Citation

  • Vijetha Koppa, 2018. "The Effect of Alcohol Access on Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Evidence From the Minimum Legal Drinking Age," American Journal of Health Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 4(2), pages 164-184, Spring.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:amjhec:v:4:y:2018:i:2:p:164-184
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    File URL: https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1162/ajhe_a_00098
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    Cited by:

    1. Dehos, Fabian T., 2022. "Underage access to alcohol and its impact on teenage drinking and crime," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    2. Dehos, Fabian & Mensen, Anne, 2022. "Binge drinking and alcohol related hospital stays: Does a legal drinking age matter for minors?," Ruhr Economic Papers 958, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    3. Marigee Bacolod & Jesse M. Cunha & Yu‐Chu Shen, 2020. "When young soldiers drink: The impact of legal access to alcohol among U.S. Army soldiers," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 87(2), pages 576-607, October.
    4. Dehos, Fabian, 2020. "Legal access to alcohol and its impact on drinking and crime," Ruhr Economic Papers 884, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    5. Baggio, Michele & Chong, Alberto & Simon, David, 2020. "Sex, marijuana and baby booms," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).

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    JEL classification:

    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health

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