Clinical trial NCT04029194: The Causal Effects of Old Age Pensions
Official title: The Causal Effects of Old Age Pensions
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Aging
Lead sponsor: National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2019-07-23
Enrollment: 1459
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 55
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: Old age pensions are a common feature of welfare policy worldwide. However, little is known about the effect of these pensions on the recipients and their families. In this study, the investigators will partner with the government of Tamil Nadu, India to study the effects of old age pensions. Households with a member who is likely to be eligible for the pension but not currently receiving it will be assigned to either a treatment or control condition. Those assigned to treatment will receive assistance in applying for the pension. Investigators will track outcomes of the elderly and their family members for several years following the intervention.

In addition to the impact of pensions on economic and health outcomes, the study will also explore how pension receipt affects the elderly's ability to cope with the impact of the COVID crisis.


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Does not receive money from government scheme
* Over age 55
* Household does not own a house, or owns a kutcha house
* No member of the household is a working age male
* Household does not own any agricultural land, or household owns agricultural land and does not receive any income from agricultural activities
* No member of the household owns a car

Exclusion Criteria:

-

Primary outcomes:
measure: Food consumption
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Goods and services consumption
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Self-assessment of financial wellbeing
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Food security
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention
measure: Food security of elderly
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention
measure: Difficulty in performing daily activities
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Basic and acute health
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Chronic health
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Nutrition
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Mental health
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Cognition
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Healthcare utilization
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Loneliness
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention. Assessed during 3 phone surveys in March-December 2020, to gauge response to covid crisis.
measure: Short-term food security during COVID
timeFrame: Assessed during 3 phone surveys in March-December 2020, to gauge response to covid crisis.
measure: Short-term mental health and loneliness during COVID
timeFrame: Assessed during 3 phone surveys in March-December 2020, to gauge response to covid crisis.
measure: Short-term medical access during COVID
timeFrame: Assessed during 3 phone surveys in March-December 2020, to gauge response to covid crisis.
measure: Short-term financial support during COVID
timeFrame: Assessed during 3 phone surveys in March-December 2020, to gauge response to covid crisis.
measure: Short-term social distancing during COVID
timeFrame: Assessed during 3 phone surveys in March-December 2020, to gauge response to covid crisis.
measure: COVID vaccination rate
timeFrame: Assessed once, in a phone survey between March - May 2021, 8-11 months after intervention start.
measure: Share of participants with COVID vaccine access
timeFrame: Assessed once, in a phone survey between March - May 2021, 8-11 months after intervention start.
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Survival of elderly person
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Labor supply of household members
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Labor supply of household members
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Labor supply of household members
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Household structure 1
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Household structure 2
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Assets
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Debt: household
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Debt: elderly
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
measure: Remittances
timeFrame: Assessed at 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and at 7 years after intervention.
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Chennai
country: India
facility: JPAL SA at IFMR
state: Tamil Nadu
Study officials:
References: