Abortion Access and Long-Run Household Outcomes

This paper presented in this ZEW Research Seminar uses individual-level, linked administrative data on the universe of pregnant females and their families in Australia to study the long-run impacts of abortion on a comprehensive set of outcomes covering the entire household domain. The authors exploit the unexpected listing of the abortion pill on the Australian national health insurance plan on August 1, 2013, and see a dramatic first-stage reduction in births. Follow-on analyses reveal positive, persistent female labor market reactions, while existing partners do not change their labor supply. However, partners do show significant improvements with their mental health up to ten years after the event. Pre-existing kids in the household are also affected: income per kid rises, and they are more likely to attend University in the future; boys show better mental health; and girls’ use of oral contraceptives increases.