Moral hazard and the demand for health services: A matching estimator approach

We estimate the impact of extra health insurance coverage beyond a National Health System on the demand for several health services. Traditionally, the literature has tried to deal with the endogeneity of the private (extra) insurance decision by finding instrumental variables. Since a priori instrumental variables are hard to find we take a different approach. We focus on the most common health insurance plan in Portugal, ADSE, which is given to all civil servants and their dependents. We argue that this insurance is exogenous, i.e., not correlated with the beneficiaries’ health status. This identifying assumption allows us to estimate the impact of having ADSE coverage on the demand for three different health services using a matching estimator technique. The health services used are number of visits, number of blood and urine tests, and the probability of visiting a dentist. Results show large positive effects of ADSE coverage for number of visits and tests among the young (18–30 years old) but only the latter is statistically significantly different from zero. The effects represent 21.8% and 30% of the average number of visits and tests for the young. On the contrary, we find no evidence of moral hazard on the probability of visiting a dentist.Publicad

Moral hazard and the demand for health services: a matching estimator approach

We estimate the impact of health insurance coverage beyond National Health Insurance on the demand for several health services. Traditionally, the literature has tried to deal with the endogeneity of the private (extra) insurance decision by finding instrumental variables. Since a priori instrumental variables are hard to find we take a different approach. We focus on the most common health insurance plan in Portugal, ADSE, which is given to all civil servants and their dependants. We argue this insurance is exogenous i.e. not correlated with beneficiaries’ health status. This identifying assumption allows us to estimate the impact of having ADSE coverage on three different health services using a matching estimator technique. The health services used are: number of visits, number of blood and urine tests, and the probability of visiting a dentist. Results show large positive effects of ADSE for number of visits and tests among the young (18 to 30 years old) but only the latter is statistically significantly different from zero. The effects represent 21.8 and 30% of the average number of visits and tests for the young. On the contrary, we find no evidence of moral hazard on the probability of visiting a dentist

MORAL HAZARD AND THE DEMAND FOR HEALTH SERVICES: A MATCHING ESTIMATOR APPROACH

In this paper we estimate the impact of health insurance coverage beyond National Health Insurance on the demand for several health services. Traditionally, the literature has tried to deal with the endogeneity of the private (extra) insurance decision by finding instrumental variables. It is hard to think, however, of any variable that a priori would be a good instrument and, therefore, we take a different approach. We concentrate on the most common health insurance plan in the Portuguese Health Survey, (ADSE), which is given to all civil servants and their dependants. We argue that this insurance is exogenous for most people i.e. not correlated with their health status. Under this identifying assumption we estimate the impact of having ADSE coverage on three different health services using a matching estimator technique. The measures of demand for health services are number of visits, number of blood and urine tests, and the probability of visiting a dentist. Preliminary results show large effects of ADSE for number of visits and tests among the young (18 to 30 years old) but only for tests are these effects statistically significantly different from zero. The magnitude of the effects represent 21.8 and 30 percent of the average number of visits and tests for the young. On the contrary we find no evidence of moral hazard on the probability of visiting a dentist. Finally, we argue that there is evidence of a positive cumulative effect of ADSE over the years.

Moral hazard and the demand for health services: A matching estimator approach.

We estimate the impact of extra health insurance coverage beyond a National Health System on the demand for several health services. Traditionally, the literature has tried to deal with the endogeneity of the private (extra) insurance decision by finding instrumental variables. Since a priori instrumental variables are hard to find we take a different approach. We focus on the most common health insurance plan in Portugal, ADSE, which is given to all civil servants and their dependents. We argue that this insurance is exogenous, i.e., not correlated with the beneficiaries’ health status. This identifying assumption allows us to estimate the impact of having ADSE coverage on the demand for three different health services using a matching estimator technique. The health services used are number of visits, number of blood and urine tests, and the probability of visiting a dentist. Results show large positive effects of ADSE coverage for number of visits and tests among the young (18–30 years old) but only the latter is statistically significantly different from zero. The effects represent 21.8% and 30% of the average number of visits and tests for the young. On the contrary, we find no evidence of moral hazard on the probability of visiting a dentist.Demand for health services; Matching estimator; Moral hazard; Portuguese health system;

Turbulent shear layers in confining channels

We present a simple model for the development of shear layers between parallel flows in confining channels. Such flows are important across a wide range of topics from diffusers, nozzles and ducts to urban air flow and geophysical fluid dynamics. The model approximates the flow in the shear layer as a linear profile separating uniform-velocity streams. Both the channel geometry and wall drag affect the development of the flow. The model shows good agreement with both particle-image-velocimetry experiments and computational turbulence modelling. The low computational cost of the model allows it to be used for design purposes, which we demonstrate by investigating optimal pressure recovery in diffusers with non-uniform inflow

Optical-NIR spectroscopy of the puzzling gamma-ray source 3FGL 1603.9-4903/PMN J1603-4904 with X-shooter

The Fermi/LAT instrument has detected about two thousands Extragalactic High Energy (E > 100 MeV) gamma-ray sources. One of the brightest is 3FGL 1603.9-4903, associated to the radio source PMN J1603-4904. Its nature is not yet clear, it could be either a very peculiar BL Lac or a CSO (Compact Symmetric Object) radio source, considered as the early stage of a radio galaxy. The latter, if confirmed, would be the first detection in gamma-rays for this class of objects. Recently a redshift z=0.18 +/- 0.01 has been claimed on the basis of the detection of a single X-ray line at 5.44 +/- 0.05 keV interpreted as a 6.4 keV (rest frame) fluorescent line. We aim to investigate the nature of 3FGL 1603.9-4903/PMN J1603-4904 using optical to NIR spectroscopy. We observed PMN J1603-4904 with the UV-NIR VLT/X-shooter spectrograph for two hours. We extracted spectra in the VIS and NIR range that we calibrated in flux and corrected for telluric absorption and we systematically searched for absorption and emission features. The source was detected starting from ~6300 Ang down to 24000 Ang with an intensity comparable to the one of its 2MASS counterpart and a mostly featureless spectrum. The continuum lacks absorption features and thus is non-stellar in origin and likely non-thermal. On top of this spectrum we detected three emission lines that we interpret as the Halpha-[NII] complex, the [SII] 6716,6731 doublet and the [SIII] 9530 line, obtaining a redshift estimate of z= 0.2321 +/- 0.0004. The equivalent width of the Halpha-[NII] complex implies that PMN J1603-4904 does not follow the observational definition of BL Lac, the line ratios suggest that a LINER/Seyfert nucleus is powering the emission. This new redshift measurement implies that the X-ray line previously detected should be interpreted as a 6.7 keV line which is very peculiar.Comment: Published in Astronomy and Astrophysic

Características hidráulicas y efecto del estrés hídrico en cuatro clones de Eucalyptus globulus Labill

Se estudió el efecto del déficit hídrico combinado con altas temperaturas sobre la tasa de transpiración, conductancia estomática y conductividad hidráulica de tallo y raíces en planta de pequeño tamaño de cuatro clones selectos de Eucalyptus globulus. Se encontraron diferencias significativas entre clones en los valores de la conductividad hidráulica de la parte aérea por unidad de superficie foliar (Kshoot), conductividad hidráulica específica (Ks) y conductividad foliar (Kfoliar). Los menores valores de Ks y Kfoliar se midieron en el clon que alcanzó el menor crecimiento y menores valores de conductancia estomática. El máximo crecimiento se midió en el clon que alcanzó mayor valor de Kfoliar. No se encontró una relación positiva entre los valores de Kshoot y el crecimiento. El clon con mayor sensibilidad estomática a las temperaturas elevadas presentó valores altos de Kshoot, Ks y Kfoliar. Este resultado demuestra que se debe estudiar las “necesidades hidráulicas” de cada genotipo para interpretar adecuadamente la relación entre conductividad hidráulica, conductancia estomática y tasa de transpiración.______________________________We examined the combined effect of water shortage and high temperatures on the evapotranspiration rate, stomatal conductance and hydraulic conductivity of stems and roots in small-sized plants of four selected Eucalyptus globulus clones and found significant differences in hydraulic conductivity of the aerial part per leaf area unit (Kshoot), specific hydraulic conductivity (Ks) and leaf conductivity (Kleaf) between clones. The smallest Ks and Kleaf values were those for the clone exhibiting the lowest growth and stomatal conduction. On the other hand, the greatest Kleaf value was that for the clone exhibiting the highest growth. No positive correlation between Kshoot and growth was found in any clone, however. The clone with the highest stomatal sensitivity to high temperatures had large Kshoot, Ks and Kleaf values. This result shows that accurately interpreting the relationship between hydraulic conductivity, stomatal conductance and evapotranspiration in each genotype entails carefully establishing its water requirements

How to Brush Your Way into the Bile Duct

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Dynamic nozzles for drop generators

received: 2015-06-03 accepted: 2015-10-16 published: 2015-11-03received: 2015-06-03 accepted: 2015-10-16 published: 2015-11-03This work was funded by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (Grant No. EP/H018913/1), the John Fell Oxford University Press Research Fund, and the Royal Society

Atelier da rua: A participated street design process

Streets are key elements on the city urban structure. Despite the importance of this structural and living urban element, the contemporary Portuguese situation is characterized by the lack of investment in the realization, use and maintenance of many streets. Moreover it is noted the local authorities difficulties to deal with citizens everyday life problems within the street and to approach diffuse and weakened civic structures. These are some of the problems encountered in small and local scale architectural projects of the public space of the streets in Portugal. Participated project processes tackle these issues through the understanding of the existing problems and promoting new processes to face them. This paper is done in the scope of the research of Atelier da Rua (Street Atelier) that is developed to meet contemporary needs of intervention in the street public space. The methodological hypothesis is to use the strategy of Atelier da Rua, a citizen participative process applied to propose effective design projects in order to improve community living and physical spaces. This paper aims to explore the combination of street intervention methodology of Atelier da Rua (Pita, 2014 b) and the values presented in the text A ladder of citizen participation written by Sherry Arnstein (1969), focusing in the particular issue of achieving “partnership” on the Atelier da Rua investigation and practice.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio