This study focuses on the estimation of both immunization demand function and its technological effect on the survival probability of a child in rural India. A careful attention is paid to the issues of consequences of parental selection and heterogeneity on survival technology. The issues of two distinct roles of prenatal care in achieving immunization as well as child's better health are addressed. The results from the child mortality model indicate that higher child mortality is largely explained by parents' lower likelihood of purchasing postnatal inputs. There is also a huge adverse impact on child probability of survival due to imperfect vaccination. Results also suggest that mothers with a high risk of child mortality compensate for inherently weak endowment. Ignoring this selection underestimates the impact of immunization on child survival. However, mothers also engage in complementary behavior by reinforcing endowments when they choose among different health inputs. Ignoring this additional selection overestimates the indirect role of prenatal care in increasing access to immunization.

Download seminar paper
(Adobe Acrobat is required to read)