University Economics Prof. Amalia Miller has received the 2006 Kenneth J. Arrow Prize for Junior Economists.
The Arrow Prize, announced last week, "recognizes two papers published each year in the Berkeley Electronic Press economics journals that make an outstanding contribution to economics," said Irene Perciali, BEPress spokesperson. "Her paper represents really strong economic analysis, but it was also an interesting topic."
The Junior Economists Award is given to a published economist who has received a Ph.D. within the last six years. Miller received her Ph.D. in 2004 from Stanford University.
Chosen from among 400 other entries, Miller's article focused on the effects of state laws that require health insurance companies to cover services rendered by midwives.
Miller said her goal was "to understand how public policy affects medical intervention."
For her study, Miller said she analyzed data from nearly four million birth certificates for babies born between 1989 and 1999 by both doctors and midwives.
"It allowed me to control for a lot of different factors," Miller said.
She added that her analysis included risk factors about the mother, birth locations and mortality and cesarean section rates. Contrary to common belief, Miller said she found that the number of cesarean sections did not decrease in states that promote midwifery.
The study concluded that the death rate has decreased significantly among women who choose midwives over doctors. According to Miller, "this is a great opportunity for families to achieve better health outcomes while saving money."
Economics Department Chair William Johnson said the prize was a testament to Miller's work.
"It is an indication that she is doing very high-quality research," Johnson said. "As you can see ... her work gains the attention from people around the country and also around the world."
The Arrow Prize is named after Nobel Prize-winning economist Kenneth J. Arrow. Perciali said Arrow was a well rounded economist -- a good representation of all areas of economics the BEPress covers.
Miller said she was flattered by her selection from among her peers.
"It is an honor," she said. "This paper was chosen among papers written... in many areas of economics. It is gratifying"
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