TY  - JOUR
AU  - Klick,Jonathan
AU  - Markowitz,Sara
TI  - Are Mental Health Insurance Mandates Effective?  Evidence from Suicides
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 9994
PY  - 2003
Y2  - September 2003
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w9994
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w9994.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Sara Markowitz
Department of Economics
Emory University
1602 Fishburne Dr.
Atlanta, GA 30322
Tel: (404) 712-8167
E-Mail: sara.markowitz@emory.edu
AB  - Many states have passed laws mandating insurance companies to provide or offer some form of mental health benefits. These laws presumably lower the price of obtaining mental health services for many adults, and as a result, might improve health outcomes. This paper analyzes the effectiveness of mental health insurance mandates by examining the influence of mandates on adult suicides, which are strongly correlated with mental illness. Data on completed suicides in each state for the period 1981-2000 are analyzed. Ordinary least squares and two-stage least squares results show that mental health mandates are not effective in reducing suicide rates.
ER  -