Buy here or buy there? Exploring Potential Non-Compliance in North Carolina’s Alcohol Beverage Control System
by Zev Winston van Zanten Abstract This study examines compliance with North Carolina’s Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) system by studying cross-border alcohol purchases. Exploiting exogenous geographic variation in proximity to neighboring states with less restrictive alcohol regimes and differing price structures, I use distance from population-weighted county centroids to state borders as a proxy for […]
Impact of Biosimilar Entry on the Effectiveness of Biologic Drug Manufacturers’ Detailing Strategies on Physician Prescribing Habits
by Kadin Thatcher Purath Abstract This paper investigates how the entry of biosimilars into biologic drug markets alters the effect of biologic detailing on physician prescribing habits. Using a panel dataset that links the Open Payments and Medicare Part D databases from 2014–2023, I study physician-level interactions with pharmaceutical firms and subsequent prescription behavior across […]
Permitless Carry Laws and the Illegal Gun Market: Evidence from Stolen Gun Values
By Mary Ella Evans Abstract This paper examines the effect of permitless carry laws on handgun theft in the United States. Using a balanced state-year panel from 2000 to 2023, with state and year fixed effects, region-year fixed effects, and state-specific cubic time trends, I find that the adoption of permitless carry laws is associated […]
Medicaid Managed Care and Emergency Department Utilization: A North Carolina Analysis
by Temitope Ayokunmi Ojo Abstract In July 2021, North Carolina Medicaid switched from a traditional fee-for-service model to a Medicaid managed care (MMC) network. This thesis explores the effect of this policy change on Emergency Department (ED) utilization for Medicaid beneficiaries in North Carolina. A linear difference-in-difference model was used to estimate the change in […]
Alcohol Use and Assault: Regression Discontinuity Evidence from the Minimum Legal Drinking Age
by Maggie Hu Abstract While it has long been observed that alcohol consumption is a risk factor for violence, the economics literature has up until recently provided minimal persuasive evidence regarding the causal nature of this relationship. In this study, we employ a regression discontinuity (RD) framework to examine how arrest and victimization rates from […]
The Effect of Community Uninsurance Rates on Access to Health Care among the Insured
by Isabella Antonio Abstract While the direct effects of being uninsured have been studied extensively, there is significantly less research on how a high community uninsured rate can impact health care access for insured individuals. Using data from SMART BRFSS, I examine the effect of community uninsured rates on access to health care for insured […]
Investing in Rural Healthcare: Impact of Private Equity Acquisition on Financial and Utilization Outcomes of Rural Hospitals
by Amanda He Abstract Private equity investment in the healthcare sector has risen considerably in recent decades, yet the impact of private equity ownership in rural hospital markets is largely unknown. Existing research points to a correlation between private equity acquisition and increased hospital incomes and charges. Rural hospitals, however, are structurally and operationally different […]
The Effect of Gun Prevalence on the Occurrence of School Shootings
by Abigail Ullendorff Abstract This paper studies how gun prevalence, represented by federal firearm background checks, affects the occurrence of school shootings. While precedent literature has estimated adverse effects of school shootings on exposed children, including reductions in mental health, academic achievement, and labor market earnings, few studies have attempted to identify factors that influence […]
Impact of Medicare Advantage Supplemental Benefit Expansion on Startup Funding
by Judy Tianhong Zhong Abstract In 2018, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that they would expand the supplemental benefits that can be included in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. The goal was to encourage insurers to innovate and test new benefit offerings that could improve health outcomes and reduce healthcare spending. A […]
