This paper addresses the question of whether the effect of parental drinking on children's later consumption of alcohol - which is frequently found to be of positive sign - exhibits a certain pattern of heterogeneity. In particular, if this effect is more prominent in the upper tail than...

This paper addresses the question of whether the effect of parental drinking on children’s later consumption of alcohol – which is frequently found to be of positive sign – exhibits a certain pattern of heterogeneity. In particular, if this eff ect is more prominent in the upper tail than...

This study investigates the different cognitive and non-cognitive characteristics associated with individuals' willingness to get vaccinated against Covid-19 and their actual vaccination status. Our empirical analysis is based on data obtained from three survey waves of about 2,000 individuals...

We study the effects of general practitioners' (GPs') resignations on their patients' healthcare utilization, diagnoses, and mortality in an event-study setting. Using claims data from a large German statutory health insurance, we find that after physicians leave, their former patients...

It is well known that smoking causes severe adverse health effects, and it seems evident that governments are justified or even obliged to implement measures of tobacco control to mitigate these effects. Yet, as this paper argues with a distinct focus on Germany, the three most important and...

In times of peak demand hospitals may fail to deliver the high standard of treatment quality that they are able to offer their patients at regular times. To assess the magnitude of these effects, this study analyzes the effects of low staff-to-patients ratios on patient outcomes empirically. We...

This paper investigates the relationship between health outcomes and variations in staffing levels as approximated by admissions on weekdays versus admissions on weekends. Because days of admission are potentially endogenous, we instrument on emergency admissions only, which are reasonably...

Theoretically, there are several reasons to expect education to have a positive effect on health, and empirical research suggests that education can be an important health determinant. However, it has not yet been established whether education and health are indeed causally-related, and the...

This paper examines the causal effect of the experience of a hospital with treating hip fractures (volume) on treatment outcome for patients. A full sample of administrative data from Germany for the year 2007 is used. We apply an instrumental variable approach to eliminate endogeneity concerns...

We complement the empirical evidence on the sustainability of weight loss achieved through cash rewards and, for the first time, rigorously examine the potential of cash rewards to prevent weight cycling. In a three period randomized controlled trial, about 700 obese persons were first assigned...