Data and Code for "Is the Cure Worse than the Disease? Unintended Effects of Payment Reform in a Quantity-based Transfer Program"

Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s) Katherine Meckel, University of California-San Diego

Version: View help for Version V1

Name	File Type	Size	Last Modified
Replication_Files			01/31/2020 06:22:PM

Project Citation:

Meckel, Katherine. Data and Code for “Is the Cure Worse than the Disease? Unintended Effects of Payment Reform in a Quantity-based Transfer Program.” Nashville, TN: American Economic Association [publisher], 2020. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2020-05-27. https://doi.org/10.3886/E117061V1

Project Description

Summary: Quantity vouchers are used in redistributive programs to shield participants from price variation and alter their consumption patterns. However, because participants are insensitive to prices, vendors of program goods are incentivized to price discriminate between program and non-program customers. I study these trade-offs in the context of a reform to reduce price discrimination in the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which provides a quantity voucher for nutritious foods to low-income mothers and children. The reform caused vendors to drop out, reducing program take-up. In addition, smaller vendors increased prices charged to non-WIC shoppers by 6.4%.

Scope of Project

Subject Terms: WIC; EBT; Welfare; Takeup; Price Discrimination

JEL Classification:
      H00 Public Economics: General
      H53 National Government Expenditures and Welfare Programs
      I38 Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty: Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs

Geographic Coverage: Texas

Time Period(s): 1/1/2004 – 1/1/2011

Data Type(s): administrative records data

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Published Versions

V1 [2020-05-27]

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