Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/173833 
Year of Publication: 
2016
Series/Report no.: 
IDB Working Paper Series No. IDB-WP-756
Publisher: 
Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Washington, DC
Abstract: 
This study examines whether Jamaica's free public healthcare policy affected health status and labor supply of adult individuals. It compares outcomes of adults without health insurance versus their insured counterparts, before and after policy implementation. The study finds that the policy reduced both the likelihood of suffering illnesses with associated lost work days and the number of lost days due to illnesses by 28.6 percent and 34 percent, respectively. Consistent with the absence of "employment lock", no effects are found on employment at the extensive margin. However, consistent with a reduced number of days lost due to illnesses, there is a positive effect of 2.15 additional weekly labor hours. This is primarily a labor supply effect as the study shows that both reported and imputed hourly wages decreased by 0.15 and 0.06 log-points respectively. Back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that the policy added a yearly average of US$PPP 26.6 million worth of net real production to the economy during the period 2008-12.
Subjects: 
Jamaica
Free Public Healthcare
Health Status
Labor Supply
JEL: 
H51
I1
J22
O12
O54
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Creative Commons License: 
cc-by-nc-nd Logo
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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