The Effects of Dobbs v. Jackson on Poverty in the United States
Open Access
- Author:
- Hapeman, Maren
- Area of Honors:
- Economics
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Austin Boyle, Thesis Supervisor
Nima Haghpanah, Thesis Honors Advisor
Bee Yan Roberts, Faculty Reader - Keywords:
- DID
Difference in Differences
Instrument Variable
IV
2SLS
Poverty
Income
Abortion
Abortion Access
Dobbs v. Jackson
Economics - Abstract:
- This paper aims to examine the effects of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization on poverty rates and income distribution in the United States. It builds on previous literature by exploring the macroeconomic impacts of abortion bans after the reversal of Roe v. Wade. Using panel data spanning from 2009 to 2022 and all 50 states, two modeling approaches are employed to examine the effects of Dobbs on female, child, and overall poverty rates in the United States. A difference in differences (DID) approach suggests that Dobbs increases total poverty by around 0.5% and child poverty by around 1%. The second model uses party composition of state legislatures as an instrumental variable in a two-stage least-squares (2SLS) regression. This model fails to find a statistical relationship between Dobbs and poverty which could be due to a lack of statistical power. Additional analysis using four different income groups as the dependent variables in the models suggests that those in higher earning groups may be harmed. Results from the DID and 2SLS models show that the portion of those living greater than or equal to 4 times the Federal Poverty Line (FPL) decreases by 1% and 4%, respectively after Dobbs. While there is minimal indication that Dobbs increases poverty, this question should be revisited as more data becomes available. This thesis provides an initial exploration of the post-Dobbs world and is part of the growing field of economic research studying abortion access and reproductive healthcare.