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Date
Jun
06
2006

A Healthy Economy Can Break Your Heart

Presenter:

Christopher Ruhm

Authors:

Christopher J. Ruhm

Chair: Thomas C. Buchmueller; Discussant: John Cawley Tue June 6, 2006 8:00-9:30 Room 326

This paper uses panel data econometric methods on data from thods the 20 largest states over the period from 1979 to 1998 to investigate how the risk of death from acute myocardial infarction (AMI) varies with macroeconomic conditions after controlling for demographic factors, fixed state characteristics, general time effects and state-specific time trends. The results indicate that a one percentage point reduction in unemployment is associated with a 1.3 percent increase in the AMI mortality rate. This effect corresponds to 2,500 additional deaths. The increase in relative risk is similar for males and females and is larger for 20 to 44 year olds than for older adults. Nevertheless, because the absolute AMI rate is higher for senior citizens, they account for a greater number of deaths. This suggests the importance of factors like air pollution and traffic congestion that increase with economic activity, are linked to coronary heart disease and may have particularly strong effects on vulnerable segments of the population, such as the frail elderly. AMI mortality risk quickly rises when the economy strengthens and then increases further if the favorable economic conditions persist. This is consistent with strong effects of other short-term factors on heart attack risk and with health being a durable capital stock that is affected by flows of lifestyle behaviors and environmental conditions whose affects accumulate over time.

ASHEcon

3rd Biennial Conference: Cornell on June 20-23 2010

Welcome to ASHEcon

The American Society of Health Economists (ASHEcon) is a professional organization dedicated to promoting excellence in health economics research in the United States. ASHEcon is an affiliate of the International Health Economics Association (iHEA). ASHEcon provides a forum for emerging ideas and empirical results of health economics research.