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Can private health insurance improve happiness? Evidence from European countries

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  • Muresan, Gabriela Mihaela
  • Ciumas, Cristina
  • Dragos, Simona Laura
  • Mare, Codruta

Abstract

Happiness was often associated with money or healthy status, but hardly with the insurance sector. Starting from the premise that private health insurance (PHI) products contribute to the quality of life through the coverage level of each policy, one major aspect remains to be investigated: can private health insurance improve people's reported happiness in the European context? Using a panel analysis on a sample of 30 European countries over the 2010–2020 period, our results show that PHI is a significant determinant of happiness. This new outlook can improve the list of benefits that come with signing a PHI policy.

Suggested Citation

  • Muresan, Gabriela Mihaela & Ciumas, Cristina & Dragos, Simona Laura & Mare, Codruta, 2023. "Can private health insurance improve happiness? Evidence from European countries," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PD).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:58:y:2023:i:pd:s1544612323009807
    DOI: 10.1016/j.frl.2023.104608
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    1. Behera, Deepak Kumar & Rahut, Dil B & Padmaja, M & Dash, Ajit Kumar, 2024. "Socioeconomic determinants of happiness: Empirical evidence from developed and developing countries," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 109(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Happiness; Health insurance; Healthy life; Life satisfaction;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G22 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Insurance; Insurance Companies; Actuarial Studies
    • I13 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Insurance, Public and Private
    • G52 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Insurance
    • C33 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models

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