Working Paper: NBER ID: w14839
Authors: Thomas C. Buchmueller; Alan C. Monheit
Abstract: The central role that employers play in financing health care is a distinctive feature of the U.S. health care system, and the provision of health insurance through the workplace has important implications well beyond its role as source of health care financing. In this paper, we consider the "goodness of fit" of ESI in the current economic and health insurance environments and in light of prospects for a vigorous national debate over shape of health care reform. The main issue that we explore is whether ESI can have a viable role in health system reform efforts or whether such coverage will need to be significantly modified or even abandoned as reform seeks to address important issues in the efficient provision and equitable distribution of health insurance coverage, to create expanded health plan choices and competition in health insurance markets, and to structure incentives for the more efficient use of health services.
Keywords: Employer-sponsored insurance; Health care reform; Health insurance; Labor market outcomes
JEL Codes: I11; I18; I38
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI) (I13) | labor market participation (J29) |
| Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI) (I13) | job choice (J29) |
| Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI) (I13) | retirement decisions (J26) |
| availability of health benefits (I19) | labor market decisions (J29) |
| rising costs of ESI (J32) | decline in coverage rates (I13) |
| Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI) (I13) | job lock (J68) |