While their analysis is by no means conclusive, several analytical tests support the notion that changes in the supply of labour in nursing home care are linked to falls in mortality for nursing home residents. Cutler et al.(2002) focuses on Mexico in the mid-1990s and finds evidence that economic crisis is associated with higher mortality among some age groups, with evidence that these effects are directly related to the magnitude of the economic shock as well as the reductions in public sector medical services. As the number of physicians per capita falls, mortality among the youngest age groups, and particularly among child-bearing women, rises. The coefficients suggest that a decline of 1 per cent in public sector physicians leads to a 0.4 per cent increase in mortality rates among child-bearing women and a 0.25 per cent increase in mortality rates among children aged 0 to 4.