"Does Enforcement of the Stricter Seat Belt Law Reduce Motor Vehicle Crash Fatality?" (Job market paper )

Presentations: American Society of Health Economists meeting (2023), Western Economic Association International meeting (2023)

Despite its continuing public policy relevance, economics research is currently sparse on the enforcement effects of seat belt laws on motor vehicle crash (MVC) fatalities. None of these studies probed the short, medium and long run differential fatality effects and gender heterogeneity for the US states that switched to primary enforcement (drivers cited for failure to use seat belts) from secondary enforcement (non-belted drivers further cited for other traffic violations) of the seat belt law. The current study fills this important void in the literature. I employ an event study empirical strategy, using 1988 to 2019 US state level data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). This research design allows me to take advantage of the variation in the location (treated and control states) and staggered timing of the states switching to primary enforcement effects on MVC fatality five years pre- and six years post- the policy change. Study findings indicate that switching to primary enforcement law generated statistically significant reductions in total occupant fatality in the short, medium, and long runs. The lower MVC fatality reduction in the long run would suggest diminishing effects. Placebo difference-in-differences estimation and other tests confirm robustness of the results. Policy implications of the findings are explored.

"Has the Edward Byrne Memorial Federal Grants Program Reduced Drug Overdose Mortality?" (with Jamein Cunningham, Albert Okunade & Robynn Cox)

Presentations: American Society of Health Economists meeting (2022), Western Economic Association International meeting (2022), Midwest Economic Association meeting (2022), Southern Economic Association meeting (2022)

Public policy implications of drug misuse and overdose mortality is well established in clinical and health services literature. A recent economic study probed the effect of Edward Byrne Memorial State and Local Law Enforcement Assistance Grant Program (EBMGP) on drug arrests and crime rates. This current study is unique by focusing on the effects of EBMGP on drug overdose mortality. We use 1980-2012 data from National Vital Statistics Systems (NVSS) multiple cause of death files. Using an event study framework, we exploit variation in the funding location (treated counties and control counties) and variation in the timing of grants receipts to examine their effect on drug overdose deaths in US counties 6 years before and 6 years after. Our findings present suggestive evidence of a statistically significant uptick in drug overdose deaths during the years following the receipt of grants. Remarkably, we observe a decline in drug overdose mortality in urban counties following program funding receipt, albeit this decline is not statistically significant. Intriguingly, the scenario is quite different in rural counties, where funding is paradoxically linked to a notable increase in drug overdose mortality rates. A possible explanation for our findings is that rural county residents are sparsely distributed, are comparatively less educated and more likely to misuse opioids without adequate response resources. We explore implications for public health facility and emergency response locations.