The private health insurance industry collected $55.9 billion in premiums in 1979 and returned $50.2 billion in benefits to its subscribers. Premiums rose 12.4 percent, slightly faster than in 1978 when premiums rose 11.4 percent, to $49.7 billion. Benefits rose 11.4 percent in 1979, down from the 12.6 rate in 1978. After operating expenses were deducted, the industry showed underwriting losses...

This paper documents that managers having large private benefits of control tend to purchase more insurance to reduce their exposure to the firm's unsystematic risk. Private benefits of control are estimated as the difference between the price of the stock and an equivalent synthetic stock (constructed with options). Our empirical analysis controls for the simultaneity between the choice of the...

vv HEN the Social Security Act was adopted in 1935, two programs for providing economic security for persons aged 65 and over were established-old-age insurance and old-age assistance. The insurance program provided for benefits on retirement to workers engaged in certain categories of employment. Subsequent legislation advanced the beginning date for payment of the monthly insurance benefits, ...

In developed countries, social security covers workers and their dependents against old age, unemployment, health, and other risks. In developing countries, formal-sector workers have access to social insurance, and the very poor have some access to social assistance and health services, but large population groups are not covered. Extending social security coverage would require delinking soci...

The research question we address is whether state laws that require health insurance policies to provide coverage for specified benefits have affected the size of the population without any private sector health insurance coverage. The laws are often alleged to increase the cost of insurance premiums and thus reduce incentives for smaller employers to offer and for individuals to purchase healt...

Background: Health insurance literacy is a nascent concept that has emerged mainly after the implementation of the law known as Obamacare in the United States. This study seeks to identify the themes of health insurance literacy in Iranian society. Methods: The study approach is qualitative. Data were collected using nine semi-structured interviews, ten focal group meetings with the presence o...

When it has been decided that universal access to a good is to be provided, governments in some cases provide it directly, as with public education and old-age benefits almost everywhere and health benefits in many countries. In other cases, governments mandate that employers provide benefits to workers or that persons obtain benefits directly themselves. Requirements that employers keep workpl...

BACKGROUND Health insurance plans have historically limited the benefits for mental health and substance abuse (MH/SA) services compared to benefits for physical health services. In recent years, legislative and policy initiatives in the U.S. have been taken to expand MH/SA health insurance benefits and achieve parity with physical health benefits. The relevance of these legislations for intern...