IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/hlthec/v30y2021i9p2264-2283.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The effects of false identification laws on underage alcohol‐related traffic fatalities

Author

Listed:
  • Erik Nesson
  • Vinish Shrestha

Abstract

We examine the effects of policies aimed at restricting the use of false identification to purchase alcohol on traffic fatalities involving alcohol‐impaired underage drivers. We find that the implementation of policies that incentivize alcohol retailers to adopt ID scanners reduces traffic fatalities from accidents involving 16–18 year old drivers with a BAC >0, but we do not find that similar policies like vertical ID laws lead to statistically significant changes in traffic fatalities involving underage impaired drivers. A back‐of‐the‐envelope calculation suggests that if all remaining states passed ID scanner laws, the reduction in underage alcohol‐related fatal accidents would generate over $400 million in annual economic benefits.

Suggested Citation

  • Erik Nesson & Vinish Shrestha, 2021. "The effects of false identification laws on underage alcohol‐related traffic fatalities," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(9), pages 2264-2283, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:hlthec:v:30:y:2021:i:9:p:2264-2283
    DOI: 10.1002/hec.4376
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/hec.4376
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/hec.4376?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sylvia Allegretto & Arindrajit Dube & Michael Reich & Ben Zipperer, 2017. "Credible Research Designs for Minimum Wage Studies," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 70(3), pages 559-592, May.
    2. Cotti Chad & Tefft Nathan, 2011. "Decomposing the Relationship between Macroeconomic Conditions and Fatal Car Crashes during the Great Recession: Alcohol- and Non-Alcohol-Related Accidents," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 11(1), pages 1-24, August.
    3. Sara Markowitz, 2000. "The Price of Alcohol, Wife Abuse, and Husband Abuse," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 67(2), pages 279-303, July.
    4. Bellou, Andriana & Bhatt, Rachana, 2013. "Reducing underage alcohol and tobacco use: Evidence from the introduction of vertical identification cards," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 353-366.
    5. Yörük, BarIs K. & Yörük, Ceren Ertan, 2011. "The impact of minimum legal drinking age laws on alcohol consumption, smoking, and marijuana use: Evidence from a regression discontinuity design using exact date of birth," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 740-752, July.
    6. Ruhm, Christopher J., 1996. "Alcohol policies and highway vehicle fatalities," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 435-454, August.
    7. Markowitz, Sara & Grossman, Michael, 2000. "The effects of beer taxes on physical child abuse," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(2), pages 271-282, March.
    8. Sara Markowitz & Erik Nesson & Eileen Poe-Yamagata & Curtis Florence & Tracy Roberts & Sarah Beth Link, 2012. "Estimating the Relationship between Alcohol Policies and Youth Violence," Working Papers 201205, Ball State University, Department of Economics, revised Jun 2012.
    9. Sara Markowitz & Erik Nesson & Eileen Poe-Yamagata & Curtis Florence & Partha Deb & Tracy Andrews & Sarah Beth L. Barnett, 2012. "Estimating the Relationship between Alcohol Policies and Criminal Violence and Victimization," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 13(4), pages 416-435, November.
    10. Lan Liang & Jidong Huang, 2008. "Go out or stay in? The effects of zero tolerance laws on alcohol use and drinking and driving patterns among college students," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(11), pages 1261-1275.
    11. Dee, Thomas S., 1999. "The complementarity of teen smoking and drinking," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(6), pages 769-793, December.
    12. Scott Adams & McKinley L. Blackburn & Chad D. Cotti, 2012. "Minimum Wages and Alcohol-Related Traffic Fatalities among Teens," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 94(3), pages 828-840, August.
    13. Chaloupka, Frank J & Saffer, Henry & Grossman, Michael, 1993. "Alcohol-Control Policies and Motor-Vehicle Fatalities," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 22(1), pages 161-186, January.
    14. Lan Liang & Jidong Huang, 2008. "Go out or stay in? The effects of zero tolerance laws on alcohol use and drinking and driving patterns among college students," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(11), pages 1261-1275, November.
    15. Cotti, Chad D. & Walker, Douglas M., 2010. "The impact of casinos on fatal alcohol-related traffic accidents in the United States," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(6), pages 788-796, December.
    16. Christopher Carpenter & Carlos Dobkin, 2009. "The Effect of Alcohol Consumption on Mortality: Regression Discontinuity Evidence from the Minimum Drinking Age," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 1(1), pages 164-182, January.
    17. Darren Grant, 2010. "Dead On Arrival: Zero Tolerance Laws Don'T Work," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 48(3), pages 756-770, July.
    18. Philip J. Cook & George Tauchen, 1984. "The Effect of Minimum Drinking Age Legislation on Youthful Auto Fatalities, 1970-1977," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 13(1), pages 169-190, January.
    19. Karaca-Mandic, Pinar & Ridgeway, Greg, 2010. "Behavioral impact of graduated driver licensing on teenage driving risk and exposure," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 48-61, January.
    20. Yörük, Barış K., 2014. "Can technology help to reduce underage drinking? Evidence from the false ID laws with scanner provision," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 33-46.
    21. Michael F. Lovenheim & Daniel P. Steefel, 2011. "Do blue laws save lives? The effect of Sunday alcohol sales bans on fatal vehicle accidents," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(4), pages 798-820, September.
    22. Zheng, Emily Yiying, 2018. "Can technology really help to reduce underage drinking? New evidence on the effects of false ID laws with scanner provisions," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 102-112.
    23. Pacula, Rosalie Liccardo, 1998. "Does increasing the beer tax reduce marijuana consumption?," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(5), pages 557-585, October.
    24. Brent D. Mast & Bruce L. Benson & David W. Rasmussen, 1999. "Beer Taxation and Alcohol-Related Traffic Fatalities," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 66(2), pages 214-249, October.
    25. Stehr Mark F, 2010. "The Effect of Sunday Sales of Alcohol on Highway Crash Fatalities," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 10(1), pages 1-22, August.
    26. Chong Son & Kudret Topyan, 2011. "The effect of alcoholic beverage excise tax on alcohol-attributable injury mortalities," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 12(2), pages 103-113, April.
    27. Dills, Angela K., 2010. "Social host liability for minors and underage drunk-driving accidents," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 241-249, March.
    28. Carpenter, Christopher, 2004. "How do Zero Tolerance Drunk Driving Laws work?," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 61-83, January.
    29. Markowitz, Sara, 2005. "Alcohol, Drugs and Violent Crime," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 20-44, March.
    30. Adams, Scott & Cotti, Chad, 2008. "Drunk driving after the passage of smoking bans in bars," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(5-6), pages 1288-1305, June.
    31. Vinish Shrestha, 2015. "Estimating the Price Elasticity of Demand for Different Levels of Alcohol Consumption among Young Adults," American Journal of Health Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 1(2), pages 224-254, Spring.
    32. Cheng Cheng, 2015. "Do Cell Phone Bans Change Driver Behavior?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 53(3), pages 1420-1436, July.
    33. Daniel Eisenberg, 2003. "Evaluating the effectiveness of policies related to drunk driving," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 22(2), pages 249-274.
    34. Vinish Shrestha, 2015. "Estimating the Price Elasticity of Demand for Different Levels of Alcohol Consumption among Young Adults," American Journal of Health Economics, MIT Press, vol. 1(2), pages 224-254, Spring.
    35. Rahi Abouk & Scott Adams, 2013. "Texting Bans and Fatal Accidents on Roadways: Do They Work? Or Do Drivers Just React to Announcements of Bans?," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 5(2), pages 179-199, April.
    36. Pogue, Thomas F & Sgontz, Larry G, 1989. "Taxing to Control Social Costs: The Case of Alcohol," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(1), pages 235-243, March.
    37. Thomas S Dee, 2001. "Does setting limits save lives? The case of 0.08 BAC laws," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 20(1), pages 111-128.
    38. Gilpin, Gregory, 2019. "Teen driver licensure provisions, licensing, and vehicular fatalities," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 54-70.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Abouk, Rahi & Courtemanche, Charles & Dave, Dhaval & Feng, Bo & Friedman, Abigail S. & Maclean, Johanna Catherine & Pesko, Michael F. & Sabia, Joseph J. & Safford, Samuel, 2023. "Intended and unintended effects of e-cigarette taxes on youth tobacco use," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Erik Nesson & Vinish Shrestha, 2016. "The Effects of False Identification Laws with a Scanner Provision on Underage Alcohol-Related Traffic Fatalities," Working Papers 2016-17, Towson University, Department of Economics, revised Apr 2020.
    2. D. Mark Anderson & Benjamin Hansen & Daniel I. Rees, 2013. "Medical Marijuana Laws, Traffic Fatalities, and Alcohol Consumption," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 56(2), pages 333-369.
    3. Anderson, D. Mark & Rees, Daniel I., 2015. "Per se drugged driving laws and traffic fatalities," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 122-134.
    4. Anderson, D. Mark & Rees, Daniel I., 2012. "Per Se Drugged Driving Laws and Traffic Fatalities," IZA Discussion Papers 7048, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Green, Colin P. & Heywood, John. S. & Navarro, Maria, 2014. "Did liberalising bar hours decrease traffic accidents?," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 189-198.
    6. Marco Francesconi & Jonathan James, 2022. "Alcohol Price Floors and Externalities: The Case of Fatal Road Crashes," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 41(4), pages 1118-1156, September.
    7. Francesconi, Marco & James, Jonathan, 2021. "None for the Road? Stricter Drink Driving Laws and Road Accidents," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    8. Colin Green & John Heywood & Maria Navarro Paniagua, 2013. "Did liberalising English and Welsh bar hours cause traffic accidents?," Working Papers 33996659, Lancaster University Management School, Economics Department.
    9. Vinish Shrestha, 2018. "Do young adults substitute cigarettes for alcohol? Learning from the master settlement agreement," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 297-321, June.
    10. Darren Grant, 2021. "Understanding the Decline in Drinking and Driving During “The Other Great Moderation”," Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(4), pages 876-907, December.
    11. Jungtaek Lee & Baris K. Yörük, 2014. "Does Legalization of Sunday Alcohol Sales Increase Crime?," CESifo Working Paper Series 5065, CESifo.
    12. Yung-Hsiang Ying & Chin-Chih Wu & Koyin Chang, 2013. "The Effectiveness of Drinking and Driving Policies for Different Alcohol-Related Fatalities: A Quantile Regression Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-17, September.
    13. French, Michael T. & Gumus, Gulcin & Homer, Jenny F., 2009. "Public policies and motorcycle safety," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 831-838, July.
    14. Cook, Philip J. & Durrance, Christine Piette, 2013. "The virtuous tax: Lifesaving and crime-prevention effects of the 1991 federal alcohol-tax increase," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 261-267.
    15. Anderson, D. Mark & Sandholt, Sina, 2016. "Booster Seats and Traffic Fatalities among Children," IZA Discussion Papers 10071, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Yörük, Barış K., 2014. "Can technology help to reduce underage drinking? Evidence from the false ID laws with scanner provision," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 33-46.
    17. Durrance, Christine Piette & Golden, Shelley & Perreira, Krista & Cook, Philip, 2011. "Taxing sin and saving lives: Can alcohol taxation reduce female homicides?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 73(1), pages 169-176, July.
    18. D. Mark Anderson & Sina Sandholt, 2019. "Are Booster Seats More Effective than Child Safety Seats or Seat Belts at Reducing Traffic Fatalities among Children?," American Journal of Health Economics, MIT Press, vol. 5(1), pages 42-64, Winter.
    19. Cook, Philip J. & Moore, Michael J., 2000. "Alcohol," Handbook of Health Economics, in: A. J. Culyer & J. P. Newhouse (ed.), Handbook of Health Economics, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 30, pages 1629-1673, Elsevier.
    20. Laurie J. Bates & Resul Cesur & Rexford E. Santerre, 2015. "Short‐run marginal medical costs from booze and butts: Evidence from the states," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 81(4), pages 1074-1095, April.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:hlthec:v:30:y:2021:i:9:p:2264-2283. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/jhome/5749 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.