Family Spillovers of Miscarriage

Using Austrian administrative data, I estimate the causal effect of miscarriage on women’s labor market and health outcomes, as well as spillover effects on close family members. To do so, I construct counterfactuals for affected individuals from those who experience a miscarriage at a later point in time. The results show that affected women experience short-term labor market detachment, worsening mental health, and increased investment in future fertility. Subsequent fertility shapes these effects, with more persistent adverse outcomes among women without a subsequent birth. For spouses, I find suggestive evidence of mental health effects, but no significant changes in labor supply or fertility-related investments beyond those observed prior to the loss. For sisters, the results indicate increased preventive reproductive healthcare use that is not explained by their own pregnancies.