Costa-Font, Joan 
ORCID: 0000-0001-7174-7919 and Hernández-Quevedo, Cristina
(2012)
Measuring Inequalities in Health: What do we Know? What do we need to Know?
Health Policy, 106 (2).
pp. 195-206.
ISSN 0168-8510
Abstract
We argue that policy analysis aiming at curving inequalities in health calls for a better understanding of what we know about its measurement pathways. Assuming that health is a good that individuals trade off against other goods, unavoidable health inequalities result when after controlling for unavoidable factors (e.g., age and gender), differences in socioeconomic status of an individual systemically engender differences in health outcomes. However, the measurement of such inequality and underpinning reasons behind are not suggestive of a clear picture. In reviewing the literature, we conclude that it is unclear what the evidence suggests about the reasons for health inequalities as well as the best possible instruments to measure both inequality and socioeconomic health gradients. We provide an evaluation of the different sources of health inequity and we draw upon measurement issues and their policy significance.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Official URL: | http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescriptio... |
| Additional Information: | © 2012 Elsevier |
| Divisions: | Centre for Economic Performance LSE Health Health Policy |
| Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine |
| JEL classification: | I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I1 - Health > I18 - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health |
| Date Deposited: | 12 Jun 2012 10:39 |
| Last Modified: | 01 Nov 2024 04:21 |
| URI: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/44305 |
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