Working Paper: NBER ID: w26384
Authors: Jiyoon Kim; Ajin Lee; Maya Rossin-Slater
Abstract: We use temperature variation within narrowly-defined geographic and demographic cells to show that exposure to extreme heat increases the risk of maternal hospitalization during pregnancy for potentially life-threatening causes. We find that this effect is driven by women residing in historically cooler rather than hotter counties, suggesting that adaptation plays a role in mitigating the health impacts of weather shocks. We also find that the heat-induced deterioration in maternal pregnancy health is larger for black than for white mothers, suggesting that projected increases in extreme heat over the next century may further exacerbate the black-white maternal health gap.
Keywords: Prenatal Health; Extreme Heat; Maternal Health; Racial Disparities; Climate Change
JEL Codes: H51; I14; I18; Q50
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Extreme heat exposure during pregnancy (I19) | Risk of maternal hospitalization during pregnancy for potentially life-threatening causes (I12) |
| An additional day during the first trimester with an average temperature above 90°F (I19) | Likelihood of hospitalization (I10) |
| Extreme heat exposure (J28) | Likelihood of emergency or urgent hospitalization for women in historically cooler counties (I14) |
| Prenatal heat exposure (I19) | First trimester hospitalizations for black mothers (I19) |
| Prenatal heat exposure (I19) | Maternal length of stay at childbirth (J22) |
| Prenatal heat exposure (I19) | Likelihood of postpartum hospital readmissions for white mothers (I19) |