Effect of Austerity Measures on Infant Mortality: Evidence From Greece.

Λεπτομέρειες βιβλιογραφικής εγγραφής
Τίτλος:	Effect of Austerity Measures on Infant Mortality: Evidence From Greece.
Συγγραφείς:	Kolesar RJ; Centre d'Etudes et Recherche sur le Développement International (CERDI), Université Clermont Auvergne, Clermont-Ferrand, France., Spruk R; University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.; The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
Πηγή:	Health economics [Health Econ] 2026 Aug; Vol. 35 (8), pp. 1175-1191. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Apr 16.
Τύπος έκδοσης:	Journal Article
Γλώσσα:	English
Στοιχεία περιοδικού:	Publisher: Wiley Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 9306780 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1099-1050 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 10579230 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Health Econ Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s):	Original Publication: Chichester ; New York : Wiley, c1992-
Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH):	Infant Mortality/trends , Economic Recession/statistics & numerical data, Greece/epidemiology ; COVID-19/epidemiology ; Humans ; Infant ; Female ; Male ; Infant, Newborn
Περίληψη:	Governments frequently adopt austerity policies when facing economic crises, yet their long-term consequences for population health remain incompletely understood. This paper examines the impact of large-scale fiscal austerity on infant mortality by exploiting the Troika-led economic adjustment program implemented in Greece beginning in 2010 as a quasi-experimental shock. Using the synthetic control method, we construct a counterfactual for Greece based on OECD and Union for the Mediterranean countries that did not experience austerity of comparable depth or duration. Relative to this counterfactual, Greece experienced a sharp and persistent increase in infant mortality following the onset of austerity. The divergence emerges immediately after 2010, remains statistically significant throughout the post-intervention period, and shows little evidence of full reversion prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The estimated effect corresponds to an average 43 percent increase in the infant mortality rate. Mortality effects are larger for boys than for girls and are concentrated in the neonatal period. Accounting explicitly for the fertility decline, we estimate approximately 854 excess infant deaths cumulatively from 2010 to 2020. Extensive robustness checks support the findings. The results identify the total effect of austerity and highlight the importance of protecting early-life health during fiscal consolidation. (© 2026 The Author(s). Health Economics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)
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Contributed Indexing:	Keywords: Greece; austerity; infant mortality; synthetic control method
Entry Date(s):	Date Created: 20260416 Date Completed: 20260702 Latest Revision: 20260813
Update Code:	20260813
PubMed Central ID:	PMC13327493
DOI:	10.1002/hec.70107
PMID:	41988926
Βάση Δεδομένων:	MEDLINE

Περιγραφή
ISSN:	1099-1050
DOI:	10.1002/hec.70107