Opioids and Post-COVID Labor-Force Participation

Francesco Chiocchio (), Jeremy Greenwood, Nezih Guner () and Karen A. Kopecky ()
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Francesco Chiocchio: Centro de Estudios Monetarios y Financieros (CEMFI), https://fchiocchio.github.io/
Nezih Guner: Centro de Estudios Monetarios y Financieros (CEMFI), https://www.cemfi.es/~guner/
Karen A. Kopecky: Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, http://www.karenkopecky.net/

No 41, Economie d'Avant Garde Research Reports from Economie d'Avant Garde

Abstract: At the onset of COVID-19, U.S. labor-force participation dropped by about 3 percentage points and remained below pre-pandemic levels three years later. Recovery varied across states, with slower rebounds in those more affected by the pre-pandemic opioid crisis, as measured by age- adjusted opioid overdose death rates. An event study shows that a one-standard-deviation increase in pre-COVID opioid death rates corresponds to a 0.9 percentage point decline in post- COVID labor participation. The result is not driven by differences in overall health between states. The effect of prior opioid exposure had a more significant impact on individuals without a college degree. The slow recovery in states with more opioid exposure was characterized by an increase in individuals who are not in the labor force due to disability.

Keywords: Covid; opioids; labor-force participation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I14 J11 J12 J21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-05
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Working Paper: Opioids and Post-COVID Labor-Force Participation (2025)
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