The effect of Medicaid expansion on crime reduction: Evidence from HIFA-waiver expansions

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Wen, Hefei; Hockenberry, Jason M.; Cummings, Janet R.
• 署名单位: University of Kentucky; Emory University; National Bureau of Economic Research
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0047-2727
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2017.09.001
• 发表日期: 2017
• 页码: 67-94
• 关键词: crime; Medicaid expansion; Substance use disorder treatment

摘要

Substance use figures prominently in criminal behavior. As such expanding public insurance and improving access to substance use disorder (SUD) treatment can potentially reduce substance use and reduce crime. We examine the crime-reduction effect of Medicaid expansions through the Health Insurance Flexibility and Accountability (HIFA) waivers. We find that HIFA-waiver expansion led to a sizeable reduction in the rates of robbery, aggravated assault and larceny theft. We also show that much of the crime-reduction effect likely occurred through increasing SUD treatment rate and reducing substance use prevalence. The implied benefit-cost ratio estimate of increased treatment on reducing crime ranges from 1.8 to 3.2. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.