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Increasing health inequality in China: An empirical study with ordinal data

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  • Hongliang Wang
  • Yiwen Yu

Abstract

This paper employs a recently introduced method of income-health matrix to study health inequality in China. The method overcomes the problems associated with ordered self-reported health (SRH) responses when the conventional tools of inequality analysis are used. Applying the new method to the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) data, we find that over the study period of thirteen years, health inequality has increased by more than one hundred percent in spite of the multifold increase in average income. We conclude that the most likely explanations for the recent increase in China’s health inequality are: aging population, worsening income inequality and poverty, division between urban and rural, and environment deterioration. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016

Suggested Citation

  • Hongliang Wang & Yiwen Yu, 2016. "Increasing health inequality in China: An empirical study with ordinal data," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 14(1), pages 41-61, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jecinq:v:14:y:2016:i:1:p:41-61
    DOI: 10.1007/s10888-015-9315-1
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Peng Nie & Andrew E. Clarck & Conchita D'Ambrosio & Lanlin Ding, 2020. "Income-related health inequality in urban China (1991-2015): The role of homeownership and housing conditions," Working Papers 524, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    2. Changjian Pan & Qiuyan Fan & Jing Yang & Dasong Deng, 2019. "Health Inequality Among the Elderly in Rural China and Influencing Factors: Evidence from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-16, October.
    3. Dongling Zhang & Guoqing Zhang & Yuxin Jiao & Yanyan Wang & Pengnian Wang, 2022. "“Digital Dividend” or “Digital Divide”: What Role Does the Internet Play in the Health Inequalities among Chinese Residents?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-19, November.
    4. Jeremy Barofsky & Stephen D. Younger, 2019. "The Effect of Government Health Expenditure on the Income Distribution: A Comparison of Valuation Methods in Ghana," Commitment to Equity (CEQ) Working Paper Series 66, Tulane University, Department of Economics.
    5. Allanson, Paul, 2017. "Monitoring income-related health differences between regions in Great Britain: A new measure for ordinal health data," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 72-80.
    6. Peng Nie & Yan Li & Lanlin Ding & Alfonso Sousa-Poza, 2021. "Housing Poverty and Healthy Aging in China: Evidence from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-20, September.
    7. Yunyun Jiang & Haitao Zheng & Tianhao Zhao, 2019. "Socioeconomic Status and Morbidity Rate Inequality in China: Based on NHSS and CHARLS Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-19, January.
    8. Min Zhang & Yufu Liu & Yixiong Xiao & Wenqi Sun & Chen Zhang & Yong Wang & Yuqi Bai, 2021. "Vulnerability and Resilience of Urban Traffic to Precipitation in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-13, November.
    9. Joan Costa-i-Font & Frank Cowell & Belén Saénz de Miera Juárez, 2017. "Does Insurance Expansion Alter Health Inequality and Mobility? Evidence from the Mexican Seguro Popular," CESifo Working Paper Series 6788, CESifo.
    10. Min Zhang & Yufu Liu & Wenqi Sun & Yixiong Xiao & Chang Jiang & Yong Wang & Yuqi Bai, 2021. "Impact of Rainfall on Traffic Speed in Major Cities of China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-17, August.
    11. Sandip Sarkar & Sattwik Santra, 2020. "Extending the approaches to polarization ordering of ordinal variables," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 18(3), pages 421-440, September.
    12. Joan Costa‐Font & Frank A. Cowell & Belen Saenz de Miera, 2021. "Measuring pure health inequality and mobility during a health insurance expansion: Evidence from Mexico," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(8), pages 1833-1848, August.
    13. Xiaodong Cui & Ching-Ter Chang, 2020. "Distribution Dynamics, Regional Differences, and Convergence of Elderly Health Levels in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-15, March.

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