Health, Inequality, and Economic Development
- 1 March 2003
- journal article
- Published by American Economic Association in Journal of Economic Literature
- Vol. 41 (1) , 113-158
- https://doi.org/10.1257/002205103321544710
Abstract
I discuss mechanisms linking health and inequality and review evidence for effects of income inequality on aggregate and individual mortality, over time and over space. I conclude that there is no direct link. Correlations come from factors other than income inequality itself, some of which are linked to broader notions of inequality and inequity that are most likely important for health. Whether income redistribution can improve population health does not depend on the existence of a direct link between income inequality and health and remains an open question.Keywords
This publication has 4 references indexed in Scilit:
- Is Segregation Bad for Your Health? The Case of Low Birth WeightBrookings-Wharton Papers on Urban Affairs, 2000
- Self-Rated Health and Mortality: A Review of Twenty-Seven Community StudiesJournal of Health and Social Behavior, 1997
- Educational differentials in mortality: United States, 1979–1985Social Science & Medicine, 1996