Volume 21, Number 1 (Winter) 1986
Culler, Steven D., and Robert L. Ohsfeldt. 1986. "The Determinates of the Provision of Charity Medical Care by Physicians." Journal of Human Resources 21(1):128-156.
We provide a theoretical model and an empirical analysis of the factors affecting the magnitude of a physician's provision of free or reduced-fee medical care. The theoretical basis of our analysis is Becker's theory of the allocation of time. Our empirical model also accounts for other factors that affect the provision of charity care. Our results indicate that physicians are likely to reduce charity care as the opportunity cost of their time increases. We also found some indirect evidence that physicians who lower their fees for low-income patients are behaving charitably and may not be engaging in price discrimination.
Culler is an economist with the Blue Cross/Blue Shield Association, and Ohsfeldt is assistant professor of economics at Ball State University. This article was written in part while both were research economists at the American Medical Association's Center for Health Policy Research. The authors gratefully acknowledge, with the usual disclaimer, the helpful comments and suggestions of Gloria Bazzoli, William Marder, James McClure, Joseph Newhouse, Roger Reynolds, Gordon Tullock, and the participants of a health policy workshop at the University of Chicago. The views expressed here are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Blue Cross/Blue Shield Association or the American Medical Association.
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