TY  - JOUR
AU  - Bundorf,M. Kate
AU  - Baker,Laurence
AU  - Singer,Sara
AU  - Wagner,Todd
TI  - Consumer Demand for Health Information on the Internet
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 10386
PY  - 2004
Y2  - March 2004
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w10386
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w10386.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Kate Bundorf
Health Research and Policy
Stanford University
HRP T108
Stanford, CA 94305-5405
Tel: 650/725-0067
Fax: 650/725-6951
E-Mail: bundorf@stanford.edu

Laurence C. Baker
Department of Health Research & Policy
HRP Redwood Bldg, Rm T110
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-5405
Tel: 650/723-4098
Fax: 650/725-6951
E-Mail: laurence.baker@stanford.edu

Sara Singer
E-Mail: SSINGER@hsph.harvard.edu

Todd Wagner
VA Palo Alto and Stanford University
Health Economics Resource Center (HERC)
795 Willow Road (152 MPD)
Menlo Park, CA 94025
E-Mail: twagner@stanford.edu
AB  - The challenges consumers face in acquiring and using information are a defining feature of health care markets. In this paper, we examine demand for health information on the Internet. We find that individuals in poor health are more likely than those in better health to use the Internet to search for health information and to communicate with others about health and health care. We also find that individuals facing a higher price to obtain information from health care professionals are more likely to turn to the Internet for health information. Our findings indicate that demand for consumer health information depends on the expected benefits of information and the price of information substitutes.
ER  -