Publication:
Inequalities in Health in Developing Countries: Swimming Against the Tide?

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dc.contributor.authorWagstaff, Adam
dc.date.accessioned2013-08-07T18:04:13Z
dc.date.available2013-08-07T18:04:13Z
dc.date.issued2002-02
dc.description.abstractInequalities in health have recently started to receive a good deal of attention in the developing world. But how large are they? An how large are the differences across countries? Recent data from a 42-country study, show large, but varying inequalities in health across countries. The author explores the reasons for these inter-country differences, and concludes that large inequalities in health, are not apparently associated with large inequalities in income, or with small shares of publicly financed health spending. But they are associated with higher per capita incomes. Evidence from trends in health inequalities - in both the developing, and the industrial world - supports the notion that health inequalities rise with rising per capita incomes. The association between health inequalities, and per capita incomes is probably due in part, to technological change going hand-in-hand with economic growth, coupled with a tendency for the better-off to assimilate new technology ahead of the poor. Since increased health inequalities, associated with rising per capita incomes is a bad thing, and increased average health levels associated with rising incomes are a good thing, the author outlines a way of quantifying the tradeoff between health inequalities, and health levels. He also suggests that successful anti-inequality policies can be devised, but that their success cannot be established simply by looking at "headline" health inequality figures, since these reflect the effects of differences, and changes in other variables, including per capita income. The author identifies four approaches that can shed light on the impacts of anti-inequality policies on health inequalities: cross-country comparative studies, country-based before-and-after studies with controls, benefit-incidence analysis, and decomposition analysis. The results of studies based on these four approaches do not give as many clear-cut answers as one might like on how best to swim against the tide of rising per capita incomes, and their apparent inequality-increasing effects. But they ought at least to help us build our stock of knowledge on the subject.en
dc.identifierhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2002/02/1721477/inequalities-health-developing-countries-swimming-against-tide
dc.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-2795
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10986/14858
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.publisherWorld Bank, Washington, D.C
dc.relation.ispartofseriesPolicy Research Working Paper;No.2795
dc.rightsCC BY 3.0 IGO
dc.rights.holderWorld Bank
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/
dc.subjectAID PROGRAMS
dc.subjectAVERAGE INCOME
dc.subjectAVERAGE INCOMES
dc.subjectCOMPARATIVE STUDIES
dc.subjectCONSTANT ELASTICITY
dc.subjectCONSTANT PRICES
dc.subjectCROSS-COUNTRY COMPARISONS
dc.subjectCROSS-COUNTRY DIFFERENCES
dc.subjectDEATHS
dc.subjectDECOMPOSITION ANALYSIS
dc.subjectDECREASING FUNCTION
dc.subjectDEVELOPING COUNTRIES
dc.subjectDEVELOPING WORLD
dc.subjectDEVELOPMENT GOALS
dc.subjectDIFFERENCES IN INCOME
dc.subjectDIMINISHING RETURNS
dc.subjectDISEASE CONTROL
dc.subjectECONOMIC GROWTH
dc.subjectEMPIRICAL REGULARITIES
dc.subjectHEALTH CARE
dc.subjectHEALTH COSTS
dc.subjectHEALTH INDICATORS
dc.subjectHEALTH OUTCOMES
dc.subjectHOSPITAL CARE
dc.subjectHOUSEHOLD SIZE
dc.subjectHOUSEHOLDS
dc.subjectINCIDENCE ANALYSIS
dc.subjectINCOME DISTRIBUTIONS
dc.subjectINCOME ELASTICITY
dc.subjectINCOME GROUPS
dc.subjectINCOME INEQUALITY
dc.subjectINCOME LEVEL
dc.subjectINCOMES
dc.subjectINEQUALITY
dc.subjectINFANT MORTALITY
dc.subjectINTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
dc.subjectLOW INCOMES
dc.subjectMALNUTRITION
dc.subjectMEDICAL CARE
dc.subjectMONEY INCOME
dc.subjectMORBIDITY
dc.subjectMORTALITY
dc.subjectMORTALITY RATES
dc.subjectMOTHERS
dc.subjectNEGATIVE SIGN
dc.subjectNEGATIVE SLOPE
dc.subjectNUTRITION
dc.subjectPER CAPITA INCOME
dc.subjectPER CAPITA INCOMES
dc.subjectPOLICY MEASURES
dc.subjectPOLICY RESEARCH
dc.subjectPOSITIVE RELATIONSHIP
dc.subjectPOVERTY REDUCTION
dc.subjectPRODUCTION FUNCTION
dc.subjectPUBLIC SERVICES
dc.subjectRADIO
dc.subjectREGIONAL DIFFERENCES
dc.subjectRURAL POPULATION DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
dc.subjectHEALTH INDICATORS
dc.subjectINEQUITY
dc.subjectINCOME INEQUALITIES
dc.subjectPUBLIC HEALTH FINANCE
dc.subjectPUBLIC SPENDING
dc.subjectPER CAPITA INCOME
dc.subjectTECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE
dc.subjectECONOMIC GROWTH
dc.subjectHEALTH POLICY
dc.subjectCROSS-COUNTRY EXPERIENCE
dc.subjectCOST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS
dc.subjectDECOMPOSITION METHOD
dc.subjectNON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS
dc.titleInequalities in Health in Developing Countries: Swimming Against the Tide?en
dspace.entity.typePublication
okr.crossref.titleInequalities in Health in Developing Countries: Swimming against the Tide?
okr.date.doiregistration2025-04-10T10:47:29.456309Z
okr.doctypePublications & Research::Policy Research Working Paper
okr.doctypePublications & Research
okr.docurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2002/02/1721477/inequalities-health-developing-countries-swimming-against-tide
okr.globalpracticeSocial, Urban, Rural and Resilience
okr.globalpracticePoverty
okr.globalpracticeHealth, Nutrition, and Population
okr.guid566181468183249365
okr.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-2795
okr.identifier.externaldocumentum000094946_02031204013460
okr.identifier.internaldocumentum1721477
okr.identifier.reportWPS2795
okr.language.supporteden
okr.pdfurlhttp://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2002/03/22/000094946_02031204013460/Rendered/PDF/multi0page.pdfen
okr.sectorReform and Financing
okr.topicEconomic Theory and Research
okr.topicHealth Monitoring and Evaluation
okr.topicRural Development::Regional Rural Development
okr.topicHealth Systems Development and Reform
okr.topicAgricultural Knowledge and Information Systems
okr.topicEarly Child and Children's Health
okr.topicHealth, Nutrition and Population::Public Health Promotion
okr.topicPoverty Reduction::Inequality
okr.unitOff of Sr VP Dev Econ/Chief Econ (DECVP)
okr.volume1
relation.isAuthorOfPublication5d38fde2-5803-56c6-b733-3866ea5be265
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery5d38fde2-5803-56c6-b733-3866ea5be265
relation.isSeriesOfPublication26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
relation.isSeriesOfPublication.latestForDiscovery26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
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