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'Til insurance do us part: the effect of the affordable care act preexisting conditions provision on marriage

Author

Listed:
  • J Matthew Hampton

    (department of Economics, University of Northern Iowa)

  • Otto Lenhart

    (Department of Economics)

Abstract

This paper investigates the effect of the 2014 Affordable Care Act pre-existing conditions provision on marriage. The policy was implemented to prevent insurers from denying insurance coverage to individuals with health conditions. We test whether the implementation of the provision led to decreases in marriage among affected adults. We add to earlier work on how marital behaviour is influenced by policy incentives and examine for the presence of "marriage lock", a situation in which individuals remain married primarily for insurance. Using data from 2009-2015 and difference-indifference models, we find that males with pre-existing conditions are 5.15 percentage points (6.4 percent) less likely to be married after the policy implementation. Effects are largest for men who had insurance coverage prior to the policy change from a source other than his own employer, suggesting that the inability to attain individual coverage and reliance on spousal insurance provided incentives to remain married.

Suggested Citation

  • J Matthew Hampton & Otto Lenhart, 2019. "'Til insurance do us part: the effect of the affordable care act preexisting conditions provision on marriage," Working Papers 1902, University of Strathclyde Business School, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:str:wpaper:1902
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    File URL: https://www.strath.ac.uk/media/1newwebsite/departmentsubject/economics/research/researchdiscussionpapers/19-02.pdf.pagespeed.ce.GCyx5ehnqG.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. David J. G. Slusky & Donna K. Ginther, 2021. "Did Medicaid expansion reduce medical divorce?," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 19(4), pages 1139-1174, December.
    2. Matt Hampton & Otto Lenhart, 2022. "Access to health care and mental health—Evidence from the ACA preexisting conditions provision," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(5), pages 760-783, May.
    3. Aparna Soni & Taryn Morrissey, 2022. "The effects of Medicaid expansion on home production and childcare," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 88(3), pages 931-950, January.
    4. Margaret E. Blume-Kohout, 2024. "Entrepreneurship Lock and the Demand for Health Insurance: Evidence from the US Affordable Care Act," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 77(2), pages 199-226, March.
    5. Matt Hampton & Otto Lenhart, 2022. "The effect of the Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion on marriage," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 60(2), pages 568-591, April.
    6. Laura Connolly & Matt Hampton & Otto Lenhart, 2024. "Labor mobility and the Affordable Care Act: Heterogeneous impacts of the preexisting conditions provision," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(1), pages 157-191, January.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Affordable care act; preexisting condititions; health insurance; marriage;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • I13 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Insurance, Public and Private
    • D1 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior

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