Wang, Katherine2020-08-282019-052019-10-252019Wang, Katherine. 2019. Subsidized Contraception and Teen Fertility: The Effects of Medicaid Family Planning Program Eligibility Expansions on the Teen Birth Rate and 12th Grade Dropout Rate. Bachelor's thesis, Harvard College.https://nrs.harvard.edu/URN-3:HUL.INSTREPOS:37364620Between 1997 and 2010, 12 states expanded Medicaid family planning program access by raising the income eligibility threshold for all women of childbearing age. I exploit the lagged implementation of these income-based expansions to explore the effects on the teen birth rate and 12th grade dropout rate. By subsidizing contraception among low-income teens, the expansions decreased the overall teen birth rate by 6.50%. Furthermore, the magnitude of this negative effect increased with the percent of females ages 15-19 living below 200% of the federal poverty line. Despite these robust results, I find no subsequent impact on the 12th grade dropout rate.application/pdfenThesis or Dissertation2020-08-28