TY  - JOUR
AU  - Kim,Beomsoo
AU  - Ruhm,Christopher J.
TI  - Inheritances, Health and Death
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 15364
PY  - 2009
Y2  - September 2009
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w15364
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w15364.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Beomsoo Kim
Department of Economics
Korea University
Anam-dong, Seongbuk-Gu
Seoul, 136-701
Korea
Tel: 301/405-3520
E-Mail: kimecon@korea.ac.kr

Christopher J. Ruhm
Frank Batten School of
Leadership and Public Policy
University of Virginia
235 McCormick Rd.
P.O. Box 400893
Charlottesville, VA 22904-40893
Tel: 434-243-3729
E-Mail: ruhm@virginia.edu
AB  - We examine how wealth shocks, in the form of inheritances, affect the mortality rates, health status and health behaviors of older adults, using data from eight waves of the Health and Retirement Survey (HRS).  Our main finding is that bequests do not have substantial effects on health, although some improvements in quality-of-life are possible.  This absence occurs despite increases in out-of-pocket (OOP) spending on health care and in the utilization of medical services, especially discretionary and non-lifesaving types such as dental care.  Nor can we find a convincing indication of changes in lifestyles that offset the benefits of increased medical care. Inheritances are associated with higher alcohol consumption, but with no change in smoking or exercise and a possible decrease in obesity.
ER  -