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Beyond Covid: Pandemics and the Economics of Aging and Longevity

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  • Holger Strulik
  • Volker Grossmann

Abstract

In this paper, we examine the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on individual aging and longevity with special focus on socioeconomic disparities in health outcomes. We also explore the individual-specific effects of Long Covid. We develop and calibrate a health economic model based on principles of the biology of human aging that captures the interaction between infections and chronic health deficits. Our analysis suggests that neglecting this interaction leads to a gross underestimation of the long-term health impact of the pandemic. Our model also explains large socioeconomic health differences that can be attributed to infection protection behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Holger Strulik & Volker Grossmann, 2024. "Beyond Covid: Pandemics and the Economics of Aging and Longevity," CESifo Working Paper Series 11104, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11104
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Holger Strulik & Sebastian Vollmer, 2013. "Long-run trends of human aging and longevity," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 26(4), pages 1303-1323, October.
    2. Daron Acemoglu & Victor Chernozhukov & Iván Werning & Michael D. Whinston, 2021. "Optimal Targeted Lockdowns in a Multigroup SIR Model," American Economic Review: Insights, American Economic Association, vol. 3(4), pages 487-502, December.
    3. Raj Chetty, 2006. "A New Method of Estimating Risk Aversion," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(5), pages 1821-1834, December.
    4. Carl-Johan Dalgaard & Holger Strulik, 2014. "Optimal Aging And Death: Understanding The Preston Curve," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 12(3), pages 672-701, June.
    5. Mohammad Akbarpour & Eric Budish & Piotr Dworczak & Scott Duke Kominers, 2024. "An Economic Framework for Vaccine Prioritization," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 139(1), pages 359-417.
    6. Strulik, Holger & Werner, Katharina, 2021. "Time-inconsistent health behavior and its impact on aging and longevity," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    7. Ana Lucia Abeliansky & Holger Strulik, 2018. "How We Fall Apart: Similarities of Human Aging in 10 European Countries," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 55(1), pages 341-359, February.
    8. Luiz Brotherhood & Philipp Kircher & Cezar Santos & Michèle Tertilt, 2020. "An Economic Model of the Covid-19 Epidemic: The Importance of Testing and Age-Specific Policies," CESifo Working Paper Series 8316, CESifo.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Covid-19; Long Covid; health behaviour; health deficits; health inequality; protection aversion; false beliefs; longevity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D15 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Intertemporal Household Choice; Life Cycle Models and Saving
    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J26 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Retirement; Retirement Policies

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