Alcohol Prices and Mortality Due to Liver Cirrhosis: Robust-Regression Results for the European Union, 2000-2010

SAGE Open

Jon P. Nelson¹ 

关键词: liver cirrhosis;    alcohol prices;    longitudinal data;    robust regression;   

DOI  :  10.1177/2158244015593118

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Sage Journals

【 摘 要 】

This study estimates a reduced-form regression model for mortality rates due to alcoholic liver diseases, with alcohol prices and income as explanatory variables. Panel data cover the years 2000-2010 for 21 member countries of the European Union. In the reduced form, prices affect mortality rates indirectly through the demand for alcohol, while income has potential direct and indirect effects. Country and time fixed effects are used to control for other factors that influence alcohol consumption and mortality. Special attention is paid to outliers in the data, and final results are based on the MS-estimator for robust regressions. Regression results for alcohol prices and income are sensitive to adjustments for stationary data and down-weighting of outliers and other influential data points. Final results indicate that alcohol prices do not affect mortality rates due to chronic liver diseases. Empirical results in the study do not lend support to broad price-based approaches to alcohol policy.

【 授权许可】

CC BY