Three Essays on the Broader Effects of the Opioid Crisis

Sujeong Park

ResearchPublished Aug 24, 2021

My dissertation investigates the unintended consequences of opioid policies, OxyContin reformulation and prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP) on crime, labor supply, and child welfare. The first paper examines the reformulation effects on crime, focusing on murder, by using a difference-in-difference methodology. This study provides evidence that the reformulation policy responding to the opioid epidemic has the unintended effect of increasing murder victims. The second paper evaluates the effects of OxyContin reformulation on labor supply and Social Security Disability Insurance take-up. The analysis results show that the implementation of OxyContin reformulation increased SSDI applications and decreased labor force participation. The last paper analyzes the effects of PDMP on child welfare outcomes. I analyzed whether implementing a PDMP leads to an increase in children living with their grandparents instead of their parents. This change could occur if the PDMP decreases the supply of prescription opioids leading some people to switch to heroin or other illegal opioids and are unable to care for their children. I used a reduced form model, and my results indicate that the implementation of must-access PDMP did increase the proportion of children living with their grandparents.

Topics

Document Details

Citation

RAND Style Manual
Park, Sujeong, Three Essays on the Broader Effects of the Opioid Crisis, RAND Corporation, RGSD-A1586-1, 2021. As of September 19, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/rgs_dissertations/RGSDA1586-1.html
Chicago Manual of Style
Park, Sujeong, Three Essays on the Broader Effects of the Opioid Crisis. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2021. https://www.rand.org/pubs/rgs_dissertations/RGSDA1586-1.html.
BibTeX RIS

Research conducted by

This document was submitted as a dissertation in July 2021 in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the doctoral degree in public policy analysis at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. The faculty committee that supervised and approved the dissertation consisted of Jeanne Ringel (Chair), David Powell, Rosanna Smart. and Brendan Saloner (outside reader).

This publication is part of the RAND dissertation series. Pardee RAND dissertations are produced by graduate fellows of the Pardee RAND Graduate School, the world's leading producer of Ph.D.'s in policy analysis. The dissertations are supervised, reviewed, and approved by a Pardee RAND faculty committee overseeing each dissertation.

This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.

RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.