Discussion Paper
Wealth Inequality and COVID-19: Evidence from the Distributional Financial Accounts
Batty, Michael M.; Deeken, Ella; Volz, Alice Henriques (2021-08-30)
A wide range of economic activity has been severely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, while others have been remarkably resilient throughout the restrictions placed on our physical interactions. The unique pattern of income losses, spending reductions and substitutions, and government relief raise many questions about how different groups fared economically over the last year.
FEDS Notes , Paper 2021-08-30-2

Discussion Paper
Updating the Distributional Financial Accounts
Batty, Michael M.; Nielsen, Eric R.; Sommer, Kamila; Volz, Alice Henriques; Friedman, Sarah; Deeken, Ella; Bricker, Jesse; Reber, Sarah (2020-11-09)
In addition to incorporating 2020q2 data from the Financial Accounts, the 2020q2 release of the Distributional Financial Accounts (DFAs) includes three substantial updates. The most consequential is the incorporation of the newly released 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF).
FEDS Notes , Paper 2020-11-09-2

Working Paper
Introducing the Distributional Financial Accounts of the United States
Shatto, Molly; Moore, Kevin B.; Sweeney, Tom; Reber, Sarah; Batty, Michael M.; Volz, Alice Henriques; Bricker, Jesse; McIntosh, Susan Hume; Sommer, Kamila; Holmquist, Elizabeth Ball; Nielsen, Eric R.; Briggs, Joseph S. (2019-03-22)
This paper describes the construction of the Distributional Financial Accounts (DFAs), a new dataset containing quarterly estimates of the distribution of U.S. household wealth since 1989, and provides the first look at the resulting data. The DFAs build on two existing Federal Reserve Board statistical products --- quarterly aggregate measures of household wealth from the Financial Accounts of the United States and triennial wealth distribution measures from the Survey of Consumer Finances --- to incorporate distributional information into a national accounting framework. The DFAs complement ...
Finance and Economics Discussion Series , Paper 2019-017

Discussion Paper
The Stability of Safe Asset Production
Almadani, Sara; Batty, Michael M.; Nemschoff, Danielle; Passmore, Wayne (2020-11-09)
A safe asset is a debt instrument that is expected to maintain its value over time, especially during adverse systemic events. Changes in the supply of safe assets can have a significant influence on short-term, risk-free interest rates. (Ferreira & Shousha, 2020) "When the scarcity of safe asset[s] is acute, the zero lower bound (ZLB) becomes binding and the safe asset market equilibrates via a reduction in output…"
FEDS Notes , Paper 2020-11-09-3

Discussion Paper
From-Whom-to-Whom Relationships in the Financial Accounts of the United States A New Methodology and Some Early Results
Batty, Michael M.; Holmquist, Elizabeth Ball; Kurtzman, Robert J. (2023-03-24)
The Financial Accounts of the United States (the Accounts or FAUS) provide data on the financial assets and liabilities of major sectors of the United States economy, disaggregated by financial instrument. The Accounts can thus serve many purposes, such as sizing sectors and instruments, analyzing changes in credit flows, and assessing the net worth of households.
FEDS Notes , Paper 2023-03-24-3

Working Paper
Financial Incentives, Hospital Care, and Health Outcomes: Evidence from Fair Pricing Laws
Batty, Michael M.; Ippolito, Benedic N. (2015-12-01)
It is often assumed that financial incentives of healthcare providers affect the care they deliver, but this issue is surprisingly difficult to study. The recent enactment of state laws that limit how much hospitals can charge uninsured patients provide a unique opportunity. Using an event study framework and panel data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, we examine whether these regulations lead to reductions in the amount and quality of care given to uninsured patients. We find that the introduction of a fair pricing law leads to a seven to nine percent reduction in the average length of ...
Finance and Economics Discussion Series , Paper 2015-107

Discussion Paper
The Distributional Financial Accounts
Batty, Michael M.; Briggs, Joseph S.; Pence, Karen M.; Smith, Paul A.; Volz, Alice Henriques (2019-08-30)
This Note describes briefly how the Distributional Financial Accounts (DFAs) are constructed and highlights some of their key features.
FEDS Notes , Paper 2019-08-30

Discussion Paper
Accounting for Reinsurance Transactions in the Financial Accounts of the United States
Batty, Michael M. (2018-10-12)
The net worth of households and nonprofit organizations grows by $249 billion to reflect the value of policies that were previously missing from the Financial Accounts of the United States (Financial Accounts). Businesses also capture $81 billion from previously missing policies. The rest of the world (ROW) sector loses $130 billion on net because they are the reinsurer for many of the policies that are newly recorded. This note describes these changes and their associated effects in more detail.
FEDS Notes , Paper 2018-10-12-1

Discussion Paper
Household Debt-to-Income Ratios in the Enhanced Financial Accounts
Ahn, Michael; Batty, Michael M.; Meisenzahl, Ralf R. (2018-01-11)
This note describes new data on household debt-to-income ratios (DTI) that is being provided in interactive maps as part of the Enhanced Financial Accounts (EFA).
FEDS Notes , Paper 2018-01-11