Multi-unit ownership and branding are separate decisions and non-consumer audiences can affect both. In this study we distinguish between the branding and chaining decisions of nursing homes, while measuring the effects of litigation and labor unions on these decisions. Chaining (independent of...

Previous empirical studies of the incentive effects of medical malpractice liability have largely ignored the incentives of providers to restructure to protect assets. This study uses a large panel database to provide evidence on asset-shielding responses to the enactment of pro-plaintiff tort...

The government-sponsored Five-Star Quality Rating System (FSQRS) aggregates multiple measures of nursing home quality into a standardized overall rating. Previous research has found that the FSQRS affected consumer demand and correspondingly motivated a strategic shift towards competing for...

Models of horizontal integration typically describe a tradeoff between multi-unit efficiencies and managerial agency costs. In extreme cases where managers cannot be incented contractually private ownership is thought to be the primary organizational substitute. In this paper we explore...

This paper uses a quality disclosure policy, the Nursing Home Quality Initiative, which mandates the public reporting of quality information on selected dimensions, to investigate how nonprofit nursing homes react to economic incentives. I find that nonprofits are as responsive as for-profits to...

This paper uses a quality mandatory disclosure policy, the Nursing Home Quality Initiative (NHQI), to investigate how quality "report cards" affect firms' choices of multidimensional product quality. I show that after the introduction of NHQI: (1) the proportion of effort allocated to unreported...