Biography:
Dr. Alex Hoagland, assistant professor at the University of Toronto, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation — and 2017 BYU Economics Valedictorian — is a health economist with expertise in applying quasi-experimental methods and economic theory to the study of individual decision-making and health behaviors. His research focuses on the role of information and behavioral biases in the take-up of high-value care by consumers, the adoption of innovative health technologies by providers, and reducing health disparities. He has also studied the costs of preventive care utilization for specific at-risk populations, including those living with mental illness and providers treating cardiovascular disease. Dr. Hoagland's work has been published in the Journal of Economics and Statistics; Health Economics, Policy, and Law; American Journal of Preventative Medicine; the Canadian Journal of Cardiology, and other numerous journals.
Dr. Hoagland received his BA in Economics and Mathematics from BYU in 2017, and his PhD in Economics from Boston University in 2022.
Student Lecture: 20 February 2025
My Brother's Keeper? Household Spillover Effects in Health Economics and Implications for Policy
Understanding how policies generate spillover effects are important to evaluating policy effectiveness, but present unique identification and estimation challenges. This presentation discusses techniques for estimating spillover effects and their implications in the context of health economics. We'll discuss applications to family health shocks, valuing informal caregiving, and the equitable diffusion of medical innovation.
Faculty Lecture: 21 February 2025
The Protective Effects of a Healthy Spouse: Medicare as the Family Member of Last Resort
Using novel Medicare data that link spouses, we examine how one spouse’s sudden incapacitation affects their partner's need for formal care. A spouse's health shock causes their partner to be 19% more likely to visit a skilled nursing facility. That pattern reflects both a change in health and a shift from informal care to formal care. In response, couples become less sensitive to the price of formal care. We explore the implications for optimal health insurance contracts. These types of within-household spillovers justify household-level deductibles and out-of-pocket maximums.