The closer the better: Does better access to outpatient care prevent hospitalization?

Arbeitspapier

In 2010-2012 new outpatient service locations were established in poor Hungarian microregions. We exploit this quasi-experiment to estimate the extent of substitution between outpatient and inpatient care. Fixed-effects Poisson models on individual-level panel data for years 2008-2015 show that the number of outpatient visits increased by 19% and the number of inpatient stays decreased by 1.6% as a result, driven by a marked reduction of potentially avoidable hospitalization (PAH) (5%). In our dynamic specification, PAH effects occur in the year after the treatment, whereas non-PAH only decreases with a multi-year lag. The instrumental variable estimates suggest that a one euro increase in outpatient care expenditures produces a 0.6 euro decrease in inpatient care expenditures. Our results (1) strengthen the claim that bringing outpatient care closer to a previously underserved population yields considerable health benefits, and (2) suggest that there is a strong substitution element between outpatient and inpatient care.

Angaben zum Objekt

• Sprache: Englisch

Verweise und Beziehungen

• Erschienen in: Series: IEHAS Discussion Papers ; No. MT-DP - 2018/8

Klassifikation und Themen

• Klassifikation: Wirtschaft ; Single Equation Models; Single Variables: Panel Data Models; Spatio-temporal Models ; Single Equation Models: Single Variables: Instrumental Variables (IV) Estimation ; Health: General
• Thema: Administrative panel data ; Inpatient care ; Outpatient care ; Potentially avoidable hospitalization ; Quasi-experiment ; Substitution effect

Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben

• Ereignis: Geistige Schöpfung
• (wer): Elek, Peter S. ; Molnár, Tamás ; Váradi, Balázs
• Ereignis: Veröffentlichung
• (wer): Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Economics
• (wo): Budapest
• (wann): 2018

Weitere Informationen

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/222021
• Letzte Aktualisierung: 10.03.2025, 11:41 MEZ