Freakonomics, M.D. Kicks Off Two-Part Series On Taxes

 Remember when in 2017 President Trump claimed that the tax reform bill he supported would enable taxpayers to complete their taxes on a postcard?

Well, that never happened, so doing taxes still sucks.

 This Friday, April 15, the podcast Freakonomics, MD kicks off a two-part series on taxes. The first episode explores the health implications of Tax Day, from increased car crash fatalities to the timing of babies being born. The second looks at so-called "sin taxes" on products like alcohol, tobacco, and sugar-sweetened beverages. 

Excerpts from the series include:

• University of Toronto doctor and researcher Donald Redelmeier explains why fatalities from car crashes increase on Tax Day:

"The increased risk on Tax Day extended all over the United States. It was mostly explained by working-age adults exactly as you would expect. And it also extended to pedestrians. So even if you yourself have filed your taxes early, it doesn't mean that all of those surrounding motorists have."

• Williams College economist Sara LaLumia examines a small group of parents choosing when to have their babies based on tax deadlines:

 

"Late-December moms are going to have more cash on hand in the early months of their child's life, because they got the child-related tax benefits right away. January moms have to wait a whole year before they can get those tax benefits… December moms are a little bit less likely to work, particularly in the third month after giving birth, than the January mothers. Maybe having a little extra cash on hand is allowing people to buy a little bit more time before they returned to work."

 

Check out Freakonomics, M.D. It's just may help your tax torture feel a tiny bit better. Tiny bit.