The Long-term Impact of In-Utero Alcohol Taxes on Adult Prenatal Drinking

• In Event: Substance Use, Maternal Behavior, and Racial Inequities in Perinatal Health

Abstract

Prior research has documented the effects of alcohol consumption on birth outcomes and the influence of alcohol taxation on maternal drinking behaviors, but the long-term intergenerational consequences of prenatal exposure to alcohol tax policies remain unexplored. This study proposes to investigate whether in-utero exposure to alcohol taxation (spanning the mid-1930s to early 1990s) shapes adult prenatal drinking behaviors and transmits health effects across generations. We explore the restricted birth certificate data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and employ time and location fixed effects model to analyze the association between historical alcohol tax rates during gestation and later-life adult pre-pregnancy/prenatal alcohol use. Additionally, the study seeks to evaluate the long-run effects of these tax-induced behavioral changes on long-term adult health outcomes, and their intergenerational spillovers on infant health. Finally, we aim to examine whether heightened responsiveness to prenatal alcohol taxes may attenuate contemporary sensitivity to alcohol-related price signals, potentially offering insights into the durability of early-life policy interventions. By bridging gaps in health economics and public health literature, this work intends to advance the understanding of how fiscal policies during critical developmental periods may exert lifelong and cross-generational impacts on health behaviors.

Authors

• Raka Datta, Georgia State University
  Presenting Author

• GODWIN AIPOH, Georgia State University
  Non-Presenting Co-Author