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Effects of Prenatal Care on Birth Outcomes: Reconciling a Messy Literature

Author

Listed:
  • Hope Corman
  • Dhaval M. Dave
  • Nancy Reichman

Abstract

Research on the effects of prenatal care on birth outcomes has produced a patchwork of findings that are not easily summarized. Studies have used varying definitions of prenatal care, leading to estimates that are difficult to compare. The identification of causal effects is particularly challenging in this literature because women enter pregnancy with varying states of health, resources and the desire to have a child and it is not feasible to conduct randomized controlled trials that deny care. The content and quality of prenatal care can vary, even across individuals initiating care at the same point in their pregnancies and with similar medical and psychosocial issues. In this chapter, we review the literature on the effects of prenatal care on birth outcomes, highlighting studies with strong research designs and plausible effect sizes. We reconcile the findings to the extent possible, summarize what is known to date, and point to potentially fruitful research directions going forward.

Suggested Citation

  • Hope Corman & Dhaval M. Dave & Nancy Reichman, 2018. "Effects of Prenatal Care on Birth Outcomes: Reconciling a Messy Literature," NBER Working Papers 24885, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:24885
    Note: CH EH PE
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    File URL: http://www.nber.org/papers/w24885.pdf
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Daniel Auer & Johannes S. Kunz, 2021. "Communication Barriers and Infant Health: Intergenerational Effects of Randomly Allocating Refugees Across Language Regions," SoDa Laboratories Working Paper Series 2021-07, Monash University, SoDa Laboratories.
    2. Di Giacomo, Marina & Piacenza, Massimiliano & Siciliani, Luigi & Turati, Gilberto, 2022. "The effect of co-payments on the take-up of prenatal tests," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    3. Jonas Minet Kinge & Jostein Grytten, 2021. "The impact of primary care physician density on perinatal health: Evidence from a natural experiment," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(12), pages 2974-2994, December.
    4. Thorsen, Maggie L. & Thorsen, Andreas & McGarvey, Ronald, 2019. "Operational efficiency, patient composition and regional context of U.S. health centers: Associations with access to early prenatal care and low birth weight," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 226(C), pages 143-152.
    5. Jie Ma & Kosali I. Simon, 2020. "Heterogeneous Effects Of Health Insurance On Birth Related Outcomes: Unpacking Compositional Vs. Direct Changes," NBER Working Papers 27728, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Diether W. Beuermann & Patricia Garcia & Jose Perez Lu & Rafael Anta & Alessandro Maffioli & Maria Fernanda Rodrigo, 2020. "Information and Communication Technologies, Prenatal Care Services, and Neonatal Health," Journal of Economics, Race, and Policy, Springer, vol. 3(1), pages 41-59, March.
    7. Emily Moschini, 2019. "Child Care Subsidies with One- and Two-Parent Families," 2019 Meeting Papers 42, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    8. Makayla Palmer, 2020. "Preconception subsidized insurance: Prenatal care and birth outcomes by race/ethnicity," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(9), pages 1013-1030, September.
    9. Evan D. Peet & Dana Schultz & Susan Lovejoy & Fuchiang (Rich) Tsui, 2023. "Variation in the infant health effects of the women, infants, and children program by predicted risk using novel machine learning methods," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(1), pages 194-217, January.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I14 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Inequality
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health

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