Publication type
Journal Article
Authors
Publication date
March 15, 2018
Summary:
This paper analyzes the effects of immigration on waiting times for the National Health Service (NHS) in England. Linking administrative records from Hospital Episode Statistics (2003-2012) with immigration data drawn from the UK Labour Force Survey, we find that immigration reduced waiting times for outpatient referrals and did not have significant effects on waiting times in accident and emergency departments (A&E) and elective care. The reduction in outpatient waiting times can be explained by the fact that immigration increases natives’ internal mobility and that immigrants tend to be healthier than natives who move to different areas. Finally, we find evidence that immigration increased waiting times for outpatient referrals in more deprived areas outside of London. The increase in average waiting times in more deprived areas is concentrated in the years immediately following the 2004 EU enlargement and disappears in the medium term (e.g., 3 to 4 years).
Published in
Journal of Health Economics
Volume and page numbers
Volume: 58 , p.123 -143
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhealeco.2018.02.001
ISSN
1676296
Subjects
Notes
Open Access
Under a Creative Commons license
#524891