Working Paper: NBER ID: w19105
Authors: Janet Currie; Mark Stabile; Lauren E. Jones
Abstract: We examine the effects of a policy change in the province of Quebec, Canada which greatly expanded insurance coverage for prescription medications. We show that the change was associated with a sharp increase in the use of stimulant medications commonly prescribed for ADHD in Quebec relative to the rest of Canada. We ask whether this increase in medication use was associated with improvements in emotional functioning or academic outcomes among children with ADHD. We find little evidence of improvement in either the medium or the long run. Our results are silent on the effects on optimal use of medication for ADHD, but suggest that expanding medication in a community setting had little positive benefit and may have had harmful effects given the average way these drugs are used in the community.
Keywords: ADHD; stimulant medications; educational outcomes; behavioral outcomes; policy change
JEL Codes: I0
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Prescription drug insurance program in Quebec (I13) | Use of stimulant medications among children with ADHD (I21) |
| Use of stimulant medications among children with ADHD (I21) | Academic performance (D29) |
| Use of stimulant medications among children with ADHD (I21) | Grade repetition (A23) |
| Use of stimulant medications among children with ADHD (I21) | Math scores (C12) |
| Use of stimulant medications among children with ADHD (I21) | Emotional functioning (D91) |
| Use of stimulant medications among children with ADHD (I21) | Relationships with parents (J12) |
| Use of stimulant medications (Z28) | Probability of suffering from depression (C46) |
| Use of stimulant medications (Z28) | Likelihood of attending post-secondary education among girls (I24) |