Did UberX reduce ambulance volume?

B-Tier
Journal: Health Economics
Year: 2019
Volume: 28
Issue: 7
Pages: 817-829

Authors (2)

Leon Moskatel (not in RePEc) David Slusky (University of Kansas)

Score contribution per author:

1.005 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

Ambulances are a vital part of emergency medical services. However, they come in single, high intervention form, which is at times unnecessary, resulting in excessive costs for patients and insurers. In this paper, we ask whether UberX's entry into a city caused substitution away from traditional ambulances for low‐risk patients, reducing overall volume. Using a city‐panel over‐time and leverage that UberX enter markets sporadically over multiple years, we find that UberX entry reduced the per capita ambulance volume by at least 6.7%. Our result is robust to numerous specifications.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:wly:hlthec:v:28:y:2019:i:7:p:817-829
Journal Field
Health
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-29