A new HCFO grant, assessing the marginal contribution of increased Medicare spending on the health status of the elderly, has been awarded to Jack Hadley, Ph.D. at The Urban Institute.
Grant No.: 59057
Title: Medical Spending and Health of the Elderly
Institution: The Urban Institute
Principal Investigator: Jack Hadley, Ph.D.
Grant Duration: December, 2006 – May, 2008
Paragraph Summary: The researchers will assess the marginal contribution of increased medical spending on health status. Specifically, they will explore whether: (1) Elderly people who spend more on medical care have better health outcomes than people who spend less; (2) The marginal effect of medical care spending on health varies across subpopulations of the elderly, stratified by demographic characteristics; and (3) Medical spending has an effect on health at the margin. The project will build upon prior research, which examined whether Medicare beneficiaries who live in geographic areas with higher average spending have better health outcomes, but did not address the impact on individuals. The objective of this project is to help guide policymakers’ decisions about policy options to reduce health care spending.
