The Effect of an Increased Minimum Wage on Infant Mortality and Birth Weight

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effects of state minimum wage laws on low birth weight and infant mortality in the United States. METHODS: We estimated the effects of state-level minimum wage laws using a difference-in-differences approach on rates of low birth weight (< 2500 g) and postneonatal mortality (28-364 days) by state and month from 1980 through 2011. All models included state and year fixed effects as well as state-specific covariates. RESULTS: Across all models, a dollar increase in the minimum wage above the federal level was associated with a 1% to 2% decrease in low birth weight births and a 4% decrease in postneonatal mortality. CONCLUSIONS: If all states in 2014 had increased their minimum wages by 1 dollar, there would likely have been 2790 fewer low birth weight births and 518 fewer postneonatal deaths for the year.