A 'Health Kuznets' Curve'? Cross-Country and Longitudinal Evidence

The distribution of income related health inequalities exhibits varying patterns when developing countries and developed countries are examined. One explanation is the existence of a health Kuznets’ curve. This paper sets out as an exploratory analysis to test the hypothesis of an inverse U-shape pattern between both economic development (as measured by GDP per capita) and income inequalities in health (as measured by concentration indices). We draw upon two datasets, the World Health Survey (2002) and the European Community household survey (1994-2001). Our results show a significant and quadratic association between of per capita GDP and income related health inequalities. Thus, there is a health Kuznets’ curve on per capita income, with a polynomial association skewed to the right where the tipping point lies around $26,000 to $38,700.