Retirement Effects on Health in Europe

Coe, Norma; Zamarro, Gema

doi:10.2139/ssrn.1148883

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Retirement Effects on Health in Europe

RAND Working Paper No. WR-588

39 Pages Posted: 21 Jun 2008

See all articles by Norma Coe

Norma Coe

University of Pennsylvania - Perelman School of Medicine

Gema Zamarro

University of Arkansas - Department of Education Reform; Center for Economic and Social Research (CESR)

Date Written: June 20, 2008

Abstract

What are the health impacts of retirement? As talk of raising retirement ages in pensions and social security schemes continues around the world, it is important to know both the costs and benefits for the individual as well as government budgets. The authors use the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) dataset to address this question in a multicountry setting. Statutory retirement ages clearly induce retirement, but are not related to an individual's health. The authors find significant evidence that retirement has a health-preserving effect on overall general health but no evidence that retiring at younger ages has a health-preserving effect.

Keywords: retirement, health, behaviors

JEL Classification: I10, J26, C21

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Coe, Norma and Zamarro, Gema, Retirement Effects on Health in Europe (June 20, 2008). RAND Working Paper No. WR-588, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1148883 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1148883