Browsing by Author "Nyman, John"

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    Health Insurance Theory: The Case of the Vanishing Welfare Gain
    (Center for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Minnesota, 2003-01) Nyman, John
    This paper presents theory that an important source of value is missing from conventional theory of the demand for health insurance, namely, the effect of the transfer of income (from those who purchase insurance and remain healthy to those who purchase insurance and become ill) on purchases of medical care. Because the portion of moral hazard that is attributable to income is welfare increasing and would replace some of moral hazard that is spuriously deemed to be welfare decreasing, the new theory suggests that the value of health insurance has been dramatically undervalued. Implications for policy are outlined.
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    Season 1, Episode 5: Healthcare Economics
    (2019-12-02) Sell, Caroline; Trobiani, Steven; Nyman, John
    The topic of this episode is healthcare economics. We talk with Dr. Steven Trobiani, a practicing neurologist who also has a background and interest in healthcare economics. We also talk with Dr. John Nyman, an economist and professor in the Division of Health Policy and Management at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health.
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    The Theory of the Demand for Health Insurance
    (Center for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Minnesota, 2001-03) Nyman, John
    Conventional theory holds that moral hazard--the additional health care purchased as a result of becoming insured--is an opportunistic price response and is welfare-decreasing because the value of the additional health care purchased is less than its costs. The theory of the demand for health insurance presented here suggests that moral hazard is primarily an income transfer effect. In an estimation based on parameters from the literature, the value of moral hazard consumption is found to be 3 times greater than its costs, suggesting that income transfer effects dominate price effects and that moral hazard is welfare-increasing.