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Inequality of Opportunities in Health in Europe: Why So Much Difference Across Countries?

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  • Jusot, F
  • Tubeuf, S
  • Trannoy, T

Abstract

Among inequalities in health, those which are explained by circumstances during childhood or parents' characteristics are recognized as inequalities of opportunities in health and are considered as the most unfair. Tackling health inequalities in later life and improving the underlying socioeconomic determinants for older people is at the core of the European Union healthy-ageing strategy. We use the 2004 Survey on Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe and examine the influence of social and family background on the probability of reporting a good self-assessed health in adulthood using logistic models in ten European countries. The comparison of the odds ratios associated with family background without and with adjustment for individual educational level and occupation allows assessing the direct influence of family background and its influence through the determination of individual social status. Using the Gini index, we evaluate the magnitude of inequalities of opportunities in health, regardless of the mechanism of transmission and consider it in comparison with several indicators of economic and sanitary conditions. Inequalities of opportunity are more marked in Mediterranean and Germanic countries than in Nordic and Benelux countries. For instance, they are twice more important in Spain than in Sweden. Whereas they are mainly explained by social reproduction in most countries a direct effect of fathers' occupation on adult health remains in Belgium, Germany, Italy and Spain. There are country-specific protective social backgrounds: son of agricultural workers in Belgium, and son of technicians or fathers in armed forces in Spain. Parents' longevity has a significant protective effect on adult health. Differences in inequalities of opportunities in health between European countries emphasize the importance of policies reducing either social reproduction or intergenerational reproduction of health.

Suggested Citation

  • Jusot, F & Tubeuf, S & Trannoy, T, 2010. "Inequality of Opportunities in Health in Europe: Why So Much Difference Across Countries?," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 10/26, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
    • Handle: RePEc:yor:hectdg:10/26
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hernández-Quevedo, Cristina & Jones, Andrew M. & López-Nicolás, Angel & Rice, Nigel, 2006. "Socioeconomic inequalities in health: A comparative longitudinal analysis using the European Community Household Panel," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 63(5), pages 1246-1261, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ma, Chao & Gu, Hai & Han, Jianyu, 2013. "我国健康服务利用的机会不平等研究:基于chns2009 数据的实证分析 [A Study on the Inequality of Opportunity in Health Care Utilization:Evidence from CHNS 2009]," MPRA Paper 53765, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Sun, Jiawei & Ma, Chao & Song, Ze & Gu, Hai, 2013. "Inequality of Opportunity in Health Care in China: Suggestion on the Construction of the Urban-Rural Integrated Medical Insurance System," MPRA Paper 49389, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Namal N. Balasooriya & Jayatilleke S. Bandara & Nicholas Rohde, 2021. "The intergenerational effects of socioeconomic inequality on unhealthy bodyweight," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(4), pages 729-747, April.
    4. Felipe Rivera, 2017. "Health opportunities in Colombia," Lecturas de Economía, Universidad de Antioquia, Departamento de Economía, issue 87, pages 125-164, Julio - D.
    5. repec:dau:papers:123456789/14339 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Johanna Fajardo-Gonzalez, 2016. "Inequality of opportunity in adult health in Colombia," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 14(4), pages 395-416, December.
    7. Chao Ma & Ze Song & Qingqing Zong, 2021. "Urban-Rural Inequality of Opportunity in Health Care: Evidence from China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-13, July.
    8. Kovacic, Matija & Orso, Cristina Elisa, 2022. "Trends in inequality of opportunity in health over the life cycle: The role of early-life conditions," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 201(C), pages 60-82.
    9. Damien Bricard & Florence Jusot & Alain Trannoy & Sandy Tubeuf, 2017. "Inequality of Opportunity in Health and the Principle of Natural Reward: evidence from European Countries," Working Papers hal-01523949, HAL.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Europe; equality of opportunity; inequality in health; intergenerational transmission; older adults; Gini index;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior

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