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Impacts of hospital wait time on patient health and labor supply

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Abstract

We estimate the effects of wait time for orthopedic surgery on health and labor market outcomes of Norwegian workers. Our identification strategy exploits variation in wait times for surgery generated by the idiosyncratic variation in system congestion at the time of referral. While we find no significant evidence of lasting health effects, longer wait times have persistent negative effects on subsequent labor supply. For every 10 days spent waiting for surgery, we estimate health-related workplace absences increase 8.7 days over the five years following referral, and the likelihood of permanent disability insurance increases by 0.4 percentage point. Cost benefit calculations point to sizable fiscal savings from shorter wait times.

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  • Anna Godøy & Venke Furre Haaland & Ingrid Huitfeldt & Mark Votruba, 2019. "Impacts of hospital wait time on patient health and labor supply," Discussion Papers 919, Statistics Norway, Research Department.
    • Handle: RePEc:ssb:dispap:919
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    File URL: https://www.ssb.no/en/forskning/discussion-papers/_attachment/404057
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    1. Per-Anders Edin & Magnus Gustavsson, 2008. "Time Out of Work and Skill Depreciation," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 61(2), pages 163-180, January.
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    4. Stephen Martin & Peter C. Smith, 2003. "Using panel methods to model waiting times for National Health Service surgery," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 166(3), pages 369-387, October.
    5. Godøy, Anna & Huitfeldt, Ingrid, 2020. "Regional variation in health care utilization and mortality," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    6. Samuel Bowles, 1998. "Endogenous Preferences: The Cultural Consequences of Markets and Other Economic Institutions," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 36(1), pages 75-111, March.
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    1. André Madeira & Victor Moutinho & José Alberto Fuinhas, 2021. "Does waiting times decrease or increase operational costs in short and long-term? Evidence from Portuguese public hospitals," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 22(8), pages 1195-1216, November.
    2. Williams, Jenny & Bretteville-Jensen, Anne Line, 2022. "What's Another Day? The Effects of Wait Time for Substance Abuse Treatment on Health-Care Utilization, Employment and Crime," IZA Discussion Papers 15083, IZA Network @ LISER.

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    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • J32 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Nonwage Labor Costs and Benefits; Retirement Plans; Private Pensions

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