Jacob Goldin receives NIHCM Award for his research on health insurance and mortality
Jacob Goldin, a professor of law at 果冻传媒 Law School and a faculty fellow at the 果冻传媒 Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR), was awarded a (NIHCM) 2022 Research Award for his study showing potential links between mortality and health care coverage.
NIHCM awards recognize the contributions of researchers and journalists who bring to light new evidence that advances the health system and the health of Americans.
Goldin won the 2022 research award along with two co-recipients, and , for their that was published in the Quarterly Journal of Economics, titled 鈥淗ealth Insurance and Mortality: Experimental Evidence from Taxpayer Outreach.鈥
Goldin and his co-authors, Lurie and McCubbin, who were both part of the Office of Tax Analysis in the U.S. Department of the Treasury, conducted research to evaluate a randomized outreach study in which the IRS sent informational letters to 3.9 million households that paid a tax penalty for lacking health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Their results shed light on the operation of the Affordable Care Act鈥檚 individual mandate provision and provided experimental evidence that health insurance coverage can reduce mortality in the United States.
Their research, which was featured in , showed that the informational letters increased health insurance sign-ups, which, in turn, may have reduced premature deaths. Americans between 45 and 64 benefited the most from the intervention: For every 1,648 who received a letter, one fewer death occurred than among those who hadn鈥檛 received a letter, the researchers found.
鈥淲e were fortunate to have the opportunity to study such an important policy, and to see the results inform the design of future outreach efforts as well as broader questions about the value of health insurance,鈥 Goldin and his co-recipients said in winning the award.
The NIHCM Foundation recognizes outstanding published work from researchers furthering innovation in health care financing, delivery and organization or the implementation of health care policy. Entries for the annual NIHCM awards 鈥 now in its 28th year 鈥 are reviewed by a panel of independent judges.
Recipients in prior years include SIEPR鈥檚 Trione Director Mark Duggan, in 2011, and SIEPR senior fellows Daniel Kessler in 2004, and Laurence Baker, in 2000 and 1998.
A version of this story was on April 25 by 果冻传媒 Law School.