Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/93309 
Year of Publication: 
2014
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 7967
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
We study the effects of the cancellation of a sizeable child benefit in Spain on birth timing and neonatal health. In May 2010, the government announced that a 2,500-euro universal baby bonus would stop being paid to babies born on or after January 1st, 2011. We use detailed micro data from birth certificates from 2000 to 2011, and find that more than 2,000 families were able to anticipate the date of birth of their babies from (early) January 2011 to (late) December 2010 (for a total of about 9,000 births a week nationally). This shifting of deliveries led to a significant increase in the number of low birth weight babies, as well as a peak in neonatal mortality. These results suggest that announcement effects are important in shaping economic decisions and outcomes. They also provide new, credible evidence highlighting the negative health consequences of scheduling births for non-medical reasons.
Subjects: 
incentives
policy change
fertility
child health
JEL: 
H00
H30
J00
J13
J17
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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