Employment effects of healthcare policy: Evidence from the 2007 FDA black box warning on antidepressants

Aline Bütikofer; Christopher J Cronin; Meghan M Skira

doi:10.1016/j.jhealeco.2020.102348

Employment effects of healthcare policy: Evidence from the 2007 FDA black box warning on antidepressants

J Health Econ. 2020 Sep:73:102348. doi: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2020.102348. Epub 2020 Jun 9.

Authors

Aline Bütikofer¹, Christopher J Cronin², Meghan M Skira³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics, Norway. Electronic address: aline.butikofer@nhh.no.
² Department of Economics, University of Notre Dame, United States. Electronic address: ccronin1@nd.edu.
³ Department of Economics, University of Georgia, United States. Electronic address: skira@uga.edu.

PMID: 32615362
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2020.102348

Abstract

Public policies aimed at improving health may have indirect effects on outcomes such as education and employment. We study the labor market effects of the US Food and Drug Administration's 2007 expanded black box warning on antidepressants. Our difference-in-differences estimates imply that the warning reduced employment by 6.1 percent among women aged 35-49 with a history of depression. We explore potential mechanisms and find that antidepressant and psychotherapy use among women aged 35-49 decreased after the warning. Our analysis suggests that the 2007 warning reduced US labor force participation by 0.23 percentage points, leading to $11.8 billion in lost wages.

Keywords: Antidepressants; Black box warnings; Employment; Mental health.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Antidepressive Agents* / adverse effects
Drug Labeling*
Employment
Female
Health Policy
Humans
United States
United States Food and Drug Administration

Substances

Antidepressive Agents