Session 1: Explaining health inequalities in economics and sociology
Socioeconomic health inequality is substantial, ubiquitous and persistent. From an economics perspective, I review what is known about its causes in high-income countries and consider what can be known and needs to be known. Causal analyses have not yet delivered strong, consistent evidence that education, income and wealth impact health in adulthood, but there is evidence that cash benefits paid to low-income households often improve infant and child health outcomes. Changes in adult health have large effects on income and wealth, and childhood ill-health both persists into adulthood and constrains economic outcomes in that phase of life. What can be known about the causes of health inequality is constrained by the limited scope for causal analysis to identify effects of socioeconomic exposures that potentially take their toll on health over the life course, cumulatively and multiplicatively. To reduce health inequality, its causes need not necessarily be known, provided health policies that improve the health of the socioeconomically disadvantaged can be identified and implemented. Political support for such policies may, however, depend on knowledge (or beliefs) about the causes of health inequality.
Owen O'Donnell is Professor of Applied Economics in the School of Economics and the School of Health Policy & Management at Erasmus University Rotterdam, and a Research Fellow of the Tinbergen Institute. His research is in the field of health economics, particularly health inequality, health insurance and health behaviour. He has published in leading field journals in economics and in demography, epidemiology and medicine. He is an Editor of the Journal of Health Economics.
