HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

This article estimates the importance of health insurance coverage on the probability of self-employment. Using data from the 1993 Current Population Survey (CPS), the author focuses on the impact of having health insurance through one's spouse on the likelihood of self-employment. The best estimates suggest that a guaranteed alternative source of health insurance would increase the probability of self-employment between 2.3 and 4.4 percentage points for husbands and 1.2 and 4.6 percentage points for wives. The author's more conservative estimates suggest that universal coverage could increase the percentage of self-employed in the workforce by 2 to 3.5 percentage points. Copyright 2001 Western Economic Association International.