Publications

Journal Article

The authors examine the effects of a policy change in the province of Quebec, Canada which greatly expanded insurance coverage for prescription medications.

The authors show that the change was associated with a sharp increase in the use of stimulant medications commonly prescribed for ADHD in Quebec relative to the rest of Canada.

The authors ask whether this increase in medication use was associated with improvements in emotional functioning or academic outcomes among children with ADHD.

The authors find little evidence of improvement in either the medium or the long run. The results are silent on the effects on optimal use of medication for ADHD, but suggest that expanding medication in a community setting had little positive benefit and may have had harmful effects given the average way these drugs are used in the community.