Did you know that Australia already gives out baby bonuses, similar to what Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton mentioned (and later said we couldn’t afford…)? Here’s an interesting post by an Australian econoblogger who is up in arms about a sudden, punctuated increase in the baby bonus as opposed to a graduated increase:
By poorly implementing the baby bonus had they caused potential disruption to maternity wards?
It turns out that the answer was, “yes and in a significant way”. Last year, we studied the introduction of the $3,000 baby bonus on the 1st July, 2004. That introduction made that day the biggest birthday in Australian history and the only day to have over 1,000 births. Indeed, statistically, 1167 births were shifted from June to July that year. It is also the case that the babies born were larger. Not surprisingly, we were concerned given that the bonus was to rise again on 1st July, 2006 by $834.
So Mal Brough may think it unseemly to think that parents would put the life of their unborn baby at risk. I think so too. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.
UESers like myself in the right/classical libertarian wing may at first be glib: this is the law of unintended consequences with government intervention. On the other hand, the cost of overcapacity at hospitals for a couple days due to rampant, wild birthing doesn’t seem all that terrible. In any case, I like the approach of the econoblogger, Josh Gans, which on first glance seems value neutral in its analysis.
These are but some of the unintended consequences of government intervention in human decision making. However, it would not surprise me if many simply lied or bribed hospital nurses to fudge the numbers. Considering the hefty bonus of $3,000, offering a nurse or hospital clerk (often underpaid and overworked) a piece of the pie wouldn’t seem unreasonable.
In either case, the governments poor choice to intervene shows some of the real dangers of allowing bureaucracies to meddle in issues of health.
On the bright side, some lucky attorney may one day have a very nice Christmas bonus from a class action law suit if these babies suffer from obesity problems later on in life. Hefty Aussie et al v.s. The Australian Government.