The Effect of Fertility Shocks on Life Insurance Take-up

Abstract: Changes in birth rates should affect several important determinants of life insurance take up, suggesting that the economic effects of policies that influence the birth rate should extend to the life insurance market. Leveraging the unique circumstances surrounding abortion deregulation in California during the 1960s and 1970s, we undertake a comparative case study, the results of which indicate access to legal abortions led the average individual (family) in California to hold significantly less life insurance compared to other states with abortion restrictions in place.