faculty
Orazio Attanasio, Costas Meghir, Corina Mommaerts, and Yu Zheng, “Growing apart: Declining within- and across-village risk sharing in rural China”
Previous research has shown a substantial increase in income inequality between rural and urban China as well as across and within regions in China during its growth process. Focusing on rural China, this column provides further evidence that the formal and informal mechanisms that previously protected households against unanticipated income changes weakened considerably from the late 1980s to the late 2000s, especially those that help to insure against village-level aggregate income risk.
Maria Schletzbaum, Amy Kind, et al, “Age-Stratified Thirty-Day Rehospitalization and Mortality and Predictors of Rehospitalization among Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: a Medicare cohort study”
Young adults with lupus on Medicare had very high 30-day rehospitalization at 36%. Considering socioeconomic disadvantage and comorbidities provided good prediction of rehospitalization risk, particularly in young adults. Young lupus beneficiaries with comorbidities should be a focus of programs aimed at reducing rehospitalizations.
Megan Bea and Kallista Bley, “(Un) conditional consumer protections in high‐cost lending regulation: impacts on local lending geographies”
Regulation of small-dollar lending in the United States is heterogeneous, leaving open the question about what policy designs work best for protecting consumers. We compare the effectiveness of regulations that include a consumer eligibility component and regulations that apply to all consumers, centering our analyses on communities with disproportionate exposure to high-interest lending storefronts.
Max Bebris co-authoed a new book, “Soaking the Middle Class ”
“Soaking the Middle Class ” (Russell Sage Foundation, 242 pages, $37.50) was authored by Rice assistant professor of sociology Anna Rhodes and University of Wisconsin assistant professor of sociology Max Besbris, who was on the faculty at Rice during Harvey. It explores how families in the Houston suburb of Friendswood recovered from the storm and how that process exacerbated economic inequality within the community.
Jenna Nobles on Women’s Healthcast Podcast
Lots of questions about menstrual tracking or cycle tracking apps popped up after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to an abortion in June 2022. Questions like: are these apps secure? Could data tracked in these apps be used to criminalize people who seek abortion care? Should people be concerned about using cycle tracking apps? Dr. Jenna Nobles joined the Women’s Healthcast to talk about why people may be interested in using cycle tracking apps, how they work, common concerns around data security and safety, and how to evaluate whether using a cycle tracking app is the right choice for you.
Rebecca Myerson et al, “Association of Funding Cuts to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Navigator Program With Privately Sponsored Television Advertising”
Key Points
Question What is the association between the 80% cut in funding for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) navigator program between 2017 and 2019 and private sector advertising in the ACA individual health insurance marketplace?
Findings This economic evaluation of 2435 counties in 33 US states using a difference-in-difference analysis found no significant change in the number of private sector advertisements aired targeting marketplace health insurance or other non-Medicare, non-Medicaid health insurance associated with the funding cuts.
Meaning These findings suggest cuts to funding for the ACA navigator program were not associated with changes in the number of advertisements aired by health insurance companies or other private sector sponsors; the findings can inform policy debates about the extent to which the private sector adjusts in response to changes in government outreach.
Mosi Ifatunji et al., “Black Nativity and Health Disparities: A Research Paradigm for Understanding the Social Determinants of Health”
Abstract After more than a century of research and debate, the scientific community has yet to reach agreement on the principal causes of racialized disparities in population health. This debate currently centers on the degree …
Jenna Nobles featured in On Wisconsin article “A Bodily Barrier to Legal Abortion”
Jenna Nobles, CDE Director and Professor in Sociology, spoke with the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s magazine, On Wisconsin, about her work with and the National Institutes of Health. Together, they analyzed anonymized data on 1.6 million menstrual cycles provided by more than 267,000 adults to a cycle-tracking app. Some women have irregular menstrual cycles that could keep them from learning they’re pregnant until it’s too late to access an abortion even in places where it’s still available.
Alejandra Ros Pilarz et al, “Making Sense of Childcare Instability Among Families with Low Incomes: (Un)desired and (Un)planned Reasons for Changing Childcare Arrangements.”
Childcare instability can negatively affect family well-being. Yet not all childcare changes are bad for families. This qualitative study (N = 85) examines work, family, provider, and subsidy-related factors contributing to childcare changes among families with low incomes. We focus on the desirability—the extent to which parents wanted to leave their provider—and the planned nature of childcare changes—the extent to which parents anticipated the change and had time to plan.