Abstract
Patient cost-sharing in health insurance tends to reduce moral hazard, but
the effect may differ between subgroups. For instance, one may expect low-income groups to react more strongly to cost-sharing than high incomes. With
the help of a structural microsimulation model, we estimate the expected
response to changes in cost-sharing across gender, age and income groups,
also considering the interactions among these characteristics. We estimate
the parameters of our model using Dutch individual-level healthcare data for
the years 2011 to 2019. We find an overall average elasticity of approximately
0.11, with considerable variation in elasticities across age groups and but only
minimal variation across income quintiles or between genders. An increase in
cost-sharing causes the largest increase in out-of-pocket expenditure for the
elderly.
the effect may differ between subgroups. For instance, one may expect low-income groups to react more strongly to cost-sharing than high incomes. With
the help of a structural microsimulation model, we estimate the expected
response to changes in cost-sharing across gender, age and income groups,
also considering the interactions among these characteristics. We estimate
the parameters of our model using Dutch individual-level healthcare data for
the years 2011 to 2019. We find an overall average elasticity of approximately
0.11, with considerable variation in elasticities across age groups and but only
minimal variation across income quintiles or between genders. An increase in
cost-sharing causes the largest increase in out-of-pocket expenditure for the
elderly.
Original language | English |
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Publisher | CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 12 Dec 2024 |
Publication series
Name | CPB Discussion Paper |
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