ERIC Number: EJ1266486
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020-Oct
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-4391
EISSN: N/A
The Effect of the Medicaid Expansion on Dropout Rates
Journal of School Health, v90 n10 p745-753 Oct 2020
Background: This study investigates how the Medicaid Expansion of the Affordable Care Act affected state high school dropout rates. Methods: This study relies on a differences-in-differences estimation strategy that is common in program evaluation, especially in education. This method replicates in a regression framework a classic pre-test post-test comparison group quasi-experimental design. The analysis is conducted at the state level, which reduces the precision of the estimates. Results: States that adopted the Medicaid Expansion had a 0.658 percentage point greater reduction in dropout rates than non-Expansion states in the year of Medicaid implementation. A back-of-the-envelope calculation suggests that if all the remaining non-Expansion states adopted Medicaid, there would be a decrease of over 92,500 youths who drop out of high school, representing a drop of 11.2% in the number of dropouts in these states. Conclusion: The Medicaid Expansion of the Affordable Care Act is more than just a health insurance program; it is a dropout prevention program.
Descriptors: Federal Legislation, Dropouts, Health Insurance, High School Students, Dropout Rate, Program Evaluation, Pretests Posttests, Comparative Analysis, Prevention
Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2191/en-us
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A