Figure 6. Actuarial Value of Benefits: Impact of $1 Increase in Monthly Payments.

Note: Figure shows coefficients on distance-to-floor × year interactions from difference-in-differences regressions. The first-stage results displayed in Table 3 indicate that a $1 change in distance-to-floor translates into a $1 change in the monthly payments, so we can interpret the coefficients as the effect of a $1 increase in monthly payments. The dependent variable is the actuarial value of benefits, which is constructed based on observed plan benefits in our main analysis dataset and utilization and cost data from the 2000 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. See text for full details. The unit of observation is the county × year, and observations are weighted by the number of beneficiaries in the county. The sample is the unbalanced panel of county-years with at least one MA plan over years 2000 to 2003. This sample includes 2,250 of 12,572 possible county-years and 62 percent of all Medicare beneficiaries. Controls are identical to those in Figure 3. The capped vertical bars show 95 percent confidence intervals calculated using standard errors clustered at the county level. Horizontal dashed lines are plotted at 0 and 1.