title: Access to health insurance and the use of inpatient medical care: evidence from the Affordable Care Act young adult mandate.
abstract: The Affordable Care Act of 2010 expanded coverage to young adults by allowing them to remain on their parent's private health insurance until they turn 26 years old. While there is evidence on insurance effects, we know very little about use of general or specific forms of medical care. We study the implications of the expansion on inpatient hospitalizations. Given the prevalence of mental health needs for young adults, we also specifically study mental health related inpatient care. We find evidence that compared to those aged 27-29 years, treated young adults aged 19-25 years increased their inpatient visits by 3.5 percent while mental illness visits increased 9.0 percent. The prevalence of uninsurance among hospitalized young adults decreased by 12.5 percent; however, it does not appear that the intensity of inpatient treatment changed despite the change in reimbursement composition of patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Economics, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), United States. Electronic address: yakosaan@iupui.edu.
authors.forename: Yaa
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Akosa Antwi
authors.affiliation: The School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA), Indiana University, United States. Electronic address: asako.moriya@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Asako S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Moriya
authors.affiliation: The School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA), Indiana University, United States; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), United States. Electronic address: simonkos@indiana.edu.
authors.forename: Kosali I
authors.initials: KI
authors.lastname: Simon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D017057:Medically Uninsured / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D058991:Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Access to health insurance; Affordable Care Act; Health insurance regulation; Inpatient medical care; Mental health care; Young adults