Impacts of rapid mass vaccination against SARS-CoV2 in an early variant of concern hotspot.

We study the real-life effect of an unprecedented rapid mass vaccination campaign. Following a large outbreak of the Beta variant in the district of Schwaz/Austria, 100,000 doses of BNT162b2 (Pfizer/BioNTech) were procured to mass vaccinate the entire adult population of the district between the 11th and 16th of March 2021. This made the district the first widely inoculated region in Europe.

Old boys' network in general practitioners' referral behavior?

We analyzed the impact of social networks on general practitioners' (GPs) referral behavior based on administrative panel data from 2,684,273 referrals to specialists made between 1998 and 2007. For the definition of social networks, we used information on the doctors' place and time of study and their hospital work history. We found that GPs referred more patients to specialists within their personal networks and that patients referred within a social network had fewer follow-up consultations and less inpatient days thereafter.

The Effectiveness of Health Screening.

Using a matched insurant-general practitioner panel data set, we estimate the effect of a general health-screening program on individuals' health status and health-care cost. To account for selection into treatment, we use regional variation in the intensity of exposure to supply-determined screening recommendations as an instrumental variable. We find that screening participation increases inpatient and outpatient health-care costs up to 2 years after treatment substantially.

Low birth weight and health expenditures from birth to late adolescence.

Objectives: The aim of this paper is to analyze the impact of low birth weight (LBW) and very low birth weight (VLBW) on health care utilization in childhood and early adolescence.

Data/methods: Using Austrian health insurance administrative panel data linked to the Austrian birth register, we estimate the effects of LBW and VLBW in comparison to normal birth weight (NBW) on the number of days spent in the hospital and on expenditures for medical assistance and medical drugs among children and young adults between birth and 21 years of age. To account for the time-invariant heterogeneity of mothers, we control for sibling fixed effects.