title: An Econometric Model of Healthcare Demand With Nonlinear Pricing.
abstract: From 2004 to 2012, the German social health insurance levied a co-payment for the first doctor visit in a calendar quarter. We develop a new model for estimating the effect of such a co-payment on the individual number of visits per quarter. The model combines a one-time increase in the otherwise constant hazard rate determining the timing of doctor visits with a difference-in-differences strategy to identify the reform effect. An extended version of the model accounts for a mismatch between reporting period and calendar quarter. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel, we do not find an effect of the co-payment on demand for doctor visits. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
authors.affiliation: Department of Economics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Johannes S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kunz
authors.affiliation: Department of Economics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.|IZA, Bonn, Germany.
authors.forename: Rainer
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Winkelmann
mesh_terms: D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003669:Deductibles and Coinsurance / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D005858:Germany; D018166:Health Care Reform / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D017059:Models, Econometric; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: Poisson process; co-payment; count data; hurdle model