TY  - JOUR
AU  - Ruhm, Christopher J
TI  - Are Recessions Good For Your Health?
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 5570
PY  - 1996
Y2  - May 1996
DO  - 10.3386/w5570
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w5570
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w5570.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Christopher J. Ruhm
Frank Batten School of
Leadership and Public Policy
University of Virginia
235 McCormick Rd.
P.O. Box 400893
Charlottesville, VA 22904-4893
E-Mail: ruhm@virginia.edu
AB  - This study examines the relationship between economic conditions and health.  Fixed-effect models are estimated using state level data for the 1972-1991 time period.  Health is proxied by total and age- specific mortality rates, as well as by 10 particular causes of death. Total mortality and nine of the ten sources of fatalities exhibit a procyclical variation, with suicides representing the important exception.  The fluctuations in mortality are larger for 20-44 year olds than for older individuals.  The predicted relationship between personal incomes and health is quite weak and is sensitive to the choice of model specifications, time periods and dependent variables. These findings suggest the possible importance of cyclical variations in the time costs of medical care or healthy lifestyles and of negative health effects of job-holding.
ER  -