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The Healthcare Cost of Air Pollution: Evidence from the World’s Largest Payment Network

Author

Listed:
  • Panle Jia Barwick
  • Shanjun Li
  • Deyu Rao
  • Nahim Bin Zahur

Abstract

Using the universe of credit- and debit-card transactions in China during 2013-2015, this paper provides the first nationwide analysis of the healthcare cost of PM2.5. We leverage spatial spillovers of PM2.5 from long-range transport for exogenous variation in local pollution and employ a flexible distributed lag model to capture semiparametrically the dynamic response of pollution exposure. Our analysis shows significant impacts of PM2.5 on healthcare spending in both the short and medium terms. A 10 mg/m3 decrease in PM2.5 would reduce annual healthcare spending by more than $9.2 billion, about 1.5% of China’s annual healthcare expenditure.

Suggested Citation

  • Panle Jia Barwick & Shanjun Li & Deyu Rao & Nahim Bin Zahur, 2018. "The Healthcare Cost of Air Pollution: Evidence from the World’s Largest Payment Network," NBER Working Papers 24688, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:24688
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Zhuoxin Liu & Laijun Zhao & Chenchen Wang & Yong Yang & Jian Xue & Xin Bo & Deqiang Li & Dengguo Liu, 2019. "An Actuarial Pricing Method for Air Quality Index Options," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(24), pages 1-19, December.
    2. Julia Rechlitz & Luis Sarmiento & Aleksandar Zaklan, 2020. "Make Sure the Kids are OK: Indirect Effects of Ground-Level Ozone on Well-Being," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1877, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    3. Tatyana Deryugina & Julian Reif, 2023. "The Long-run Effect of Air Pollution on Survival," NBER Working Papers 31858, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Guidetti, Bruna & Pereda, Paula & Severnini, Edson R., 2020. "Health Shocks under Hospital Capacity Constraint: Evidence from Air Pollution in Sao Paulo, Brazil," IZA Discussion Papers 13211, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Hamid M. Pouran & Seyed M. Karimi & Mariana Padilha Campos Lopes & Yong Sheng, 2022. "What China’s Environmental Policy Means for PV Solar, Electric Vehicles, and Carbon Capture and Storage Technologies," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(23), pages 1-13, November.
    6. Lin Yang & Yatang Lin & Jin Wang & Fangyuan Peng, 2024. "Achieving Air Pollution Control Targets with Technology-Aided Monitoring: Better Enforcement or Localized Efforts?," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 16(4), pages 280-315, November.
    7. Luis Sarmiento, 2020. "I Am Innocent: Hourly Variations in Air Pollution and Crime Behavior," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1879, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    8. He, Guojun & Liu, Tong & Zhou, Maigeng, 2020. "Straw burning, PM2.5, and death: Evidence from China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    9. Bruna Morais Guidetti & Paula Carvalho Pereda, Edson Roberto Severnini, 2021. "Health Shocks under Hospital Capacity Constraints: Evidence from Air Pollution in São Paulo, Brazil," Working Papers, Department of Economics 2021_05, University of São Paulo (FEA-USP).
    10. Agarwal, Sumit & Han, Yajie & Qin, Yu & Zhu, Hongjia, 2023. "Disguised pollution: Industrial activities in the dark," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 223(C).
    11. Chi-Yo Huang & Pei-Han Chung & Joseph Z. Shyu & Yao-Hua Ho & Chao-Hsin Wu & Ming-Che Lee & Ming-Jenn Wu, 2018. "Evaluation and Selection of Materials for Particulate Matter MEMS Sensors by Using Hybrid MCDM Methods," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-35, September.
    12. Huang, Jialin & Xing, Jianwei & Yongchen Zou, Eric, 2023. "(Re)scheduling pollution exposure: The case of surgery schedules," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 219(C).
    13. Li, Pei & Lu, Yi & Wang, Jin, 2020. "The effects of fuel standards on air pollution: Evidence from China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    14. Fu, Shihe & Viard, V. Brian & Zhang, Peng, 2022. "Trans-boundary air pollution spillovers: Physical transport and economic costs by distance," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    15. Bakkensen, Laura A. & Ma, Lala & Muehlenbachs, Lucija & Benitez, Lina, 2024. "Cumulative impacts in environmental justice: Insights from economics and policy," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    16. Yi, Fujin & Ye, Haijian & Wu, Ximing & Zhang, Y. Yvette & Jiang, Fei, 2020. "Self-aggravation effect of air pollution: Evidence from residential electricity consumption in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    17. Guoying Deng & Manuel A. Hernandez & Shu Xu, 2020. "When Power Plants Leave Town: Environmental Quality and the Housing Market in China," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 77(4), pages 751-780, December.
    18. Wang, Chunchao & Lin, Qianqian & Qiu, Yun, 2020. "Productivity Loss amid Invisible Pollution," GLO Discussion Paper Series 722, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    19. Xia, Fan & Xing, Jianwei & Xu, Jintao & Pan, Xiaochuan, 2022. "The short-term impact of air pollution on medical expenditures: Evidence from Beijing," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    20. Chen, Jidong & Shi, Xinzheng & Zhang, Ming-ang & Zhang, Sihan, 2024. "Centralization of environmental administration and air pollution: Evidence from China," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    21. Jin, Yana & Andersson, Henrik & Zhang, Shiqiu, 2020. "Do preferences to reduce health risks related to air pollution depend on illness type? Evidence from a choice experiment in Beijing, China," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    22. Xinming Du, 2023. "Symptom or Culprit? Social Media, Air Pollution, and Violence," CESifo Working Paper Series 10296, CESifo.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I15 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Economic Development
    • Q51 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Valuation of Environmental Effects
    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling

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