PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Huang, Shan
AU  - Ullrich, Hannes
TI  - Provider effects in antibiotic prescribing
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.0523-12900R1
DP  - 2024 May 08
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 0523-12900R1
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2024/05/01/jhr.0523-12900R1.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2024/05/01/jhr.0523-12900R1.full
AB  - In the fight against antibiotic resistance, reducing antibiotic consumption while preserving healthcare quality presents a critical health policy challenge. We investigate the role of practice styles in patients’ antibiotic intake using exogenous variation in patient-physician assignment. Practice style heterogeneity explains 49% of the differences in overall antibiotic use and 83% of the differences in second-line antibiotic use between primary care providers. We find no evidence that high prescribing is linked to better treatment quality or fewer adverse health outcomes. Policies improving physician decision-making, particularly among high-prescribers, may be effective in reducing antibiotic consumption while sustaining healthcare quality.