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Employment-Based Health Insurance and Job Mobility: Is there Evidence of Job-Lock?

Year: 1994

Type: article

Abstract: This paper assesses the impact of employer-provided health insurance on job mobility by exploring the extent to which workers are “locked” into their jobs because preexisting conditions exclusions make it expensive for individuals with medical problems to relinquish their current health insurance. I estimate the degree of job-lock by comparing the difference in the turnover rates of those with high and low medical expenses for those with and without employer-provided health insurance. Using data from the 1987 National Medical Expenditure Survey, I estimate that job-lock reduces the voluntary turnover rate of those with employer-provided health insurance by 25 percent, from 16 percent to 12 percent per year.

Source: The Quarterly Journal of Economics

DOI: 10.2307/2118427

Author: B. C. Madrian

Institution: Harvard University

Language: English

Topic: Healthcare Policy and Management

Subfield: Economics and Econometrics

Field: Economics, Econometrics and Finance

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Decent work and economic growth, Reduced inequalities, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W2891907176