Dependent Coverage Mandates and Moral Hazard

Empirical studies have found it difficult to separately identify adverse selection from moral hazard since the individual effects tend to affect observable behavior in the same way. Using the state level dependent coverage mandates that were passed before the Affordable Care Act\u27s dependent coverage mandate took effect, I am able to control for selection into insurance and more credibly identify moral hazard. More specifically, I use the variation in eligibility criteria and the timing of implementations of the mandates across states over time in order to discern among the individual effects of hidden information. Data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System allows me to consider the potential role of moral hazard in health insurance markets and more generally allows me to consider the effects of dependent health insurance on health outcomes for young adults.https://corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/econ_econometrics/1000/thumbnail.jp