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Full-Text Articles in Business
The Coexistence Of Multiple Distribution Systems For Financial Services: The Case Of Property-Liability Insurance, Allen N. Berger, J. David Cummins, Mary A. Weiss
The Coexistence Of Multiple Distribution Systems For Financial Services: The Case Of Property-Liability Insurance, Allen N. Berger, J. David Cummins, Mary A. Weiss
Faculty Publications
Property-liability insurance is distributed through a direct-writer system, where agents represent one insurer, and an independent- agency system, where agents represent several insurers. Independent-agency insurers have higher costs than direct writers. The market- imperfections hypothesis attributes the coexistence of the two types of insurers to impediments to competition, while the product-quality hypothesis holds that independent-agency insurers provide higher-quality services. We measure cost efficiency and profit efficiency for property-liability insurers and find strong support for the product-quality hypothesis, implying that independent-agency insurers produce higher-quality outputs and are compensated by higher revenues.
An Empirical Study Of Economies Of Scope In Home Healthcare, Theresa I. Gonzales
An Empirical Study Of Economies Of Scope In Home Healthcare, Theresa I. Gonzales
WCBT Faculty Publications
Objective: To apply the economic theory of economies of scope to the home healthcare industry. Data Sources: Data on 488 observations obtained from the Cost Report (HCFA Form 1728-86) of all Connecticut state-licensed, Medicare-certified home health agencies. Study Design: The Cost Report was the primary source of data for this study. Information on total cost, scope, and other related factors was collected. Logarithmic and nonlinear regression analyses were used to identify factors related to scope and also to test for economies of scope. Data Collection Method: Data collected were both cross-sectional and time series (from 1988-1992). Data accuracy was verified …