Modeling Inter-Regional Patient Mobility: Does Distance Go Far Enough?

This paper estimates a theory-guided gravity equation of regional patient flows. In our model, a patient’s choice to consult a physician in a particular region depends on a measure of spatial accessibility that accounts for the exact locations of both patients and physicians. Introducing this concept in a spatial economics model, we derive an augmented gravity-type equation and show that our measure of accessibility performs better in explaining patient flows than bilateral distance. We conduct a rich set of counterfactual simulations, illustrating that the effects of physicians’ market exits on patient mobility crucially depend on their exact locations.

Keywords: gravity model, patient mobility, spatial accessibility, two-step floating catchment areas (2SFCA)

JEL Classification: R10, R12, R23, I11, I18

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Irlacher, Michael and Pennerstorfer, Dieter and Renner, Anna-Theresa and Unger, Florian, Modeling Inter-Regional Patient Mobility: Does Distance Go Far Enough? (April 1, 2021). cege Discussion Paper No. 418, April 2021, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3820470 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3820470