Assessing heterogeneity in the health effects of social pensions among the poor elderly: Evidence from Peru

In many countries large parts of the population do not have access to health insurance. Peru has made an effort to change this in the early 2000’s. The institutional setup gives rise to the rare opportunity to study the effects of health insurance coverage exploiting a regression discontinuity design. We find large effects on uptake and utilization. Access to health care centers leads to increased awareness about health problems and this even generates a willingness to pay for services that are not covered, which in the context of Peru is a potentially desirable form of supplier-induced demand.