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Health and Mortality Delta: Assessing the Welfare Cost of Household Insurance Choice

Author

Listed:
  • Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh

    (New York University)

  • Motohiro Yogo

    (Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis)

  • Ralph S. J. Koijen

    (University of Chicago)

Abstract

We develop a pair of risk measures for the universe of health and longevity products that includes life insurance, annuities, and supplementary health insurance. Health delta measures the differential payoff that a policy delivers in poor health, while mortality delta measures the differential payoff that a policy delivers at death. Optimal portfolio choice simplifies to the problem of choosing a combination of health and longevity products that replicates the optimal exposure to health and mortality delta. For each household in Health and Retirement Study, we calculate the health and mortality delta implied by its ownership of life insurance, annuities including defined-benefit plans, supplementary health insurance, and long-term care insurance. For the median household aged 51 to 58, the welfare cost of market incompleteness or suboptimal portfolio choice is 0.22% of wealth over two years and 27% of wealth over the remaining lifetime.

Suggested Citation

  • Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh & Motohiro Yogo & Ralph S. J. Koijen, 2011. "Health and Mortality Delta: Assessing the Welfare Cost of Household Insurance Choice," 2011 Meeting Papers 633, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    • Handle: RePEc:red:sed011:633
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    JEL classification:

    • D14 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Saving; Personal Finance
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • I13 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Insurance, Public and Private

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