How might the Affordable Care Act's coverage expansion provisions influence demand for medical care?

ABSTRACT:

Context

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is predicted to expand health insurance to 25 million individuals. Since insurance reduces the price of medical care, the quantity of services demanded by these newly covered individuals is expected to rise. In this article I provide a comprehensive picture of the demographics, health status, and medical care utilization of the population targeted for the ACA's expansion of coverage, contrasted with that of other nonelderly, insured populations. In addition, I synthesize the current evidence regarding the causal impact of insurance on medical care demand, drawing heavily on recent evidence from Massachusetts and Oregon.

Methods

Using the 2008 to 2010 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, I conducted bivariate and multivariate analyses to exa

SUBMITTER: Abraham JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3955378 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature