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Rural-urban disparities in unmet long-term care needs in China: The role of the hukou status

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  • Zhu, Yumei
  • Österle, August

Abstract

This article studies rural-urban disparities in unmet long-term care (LTC) needs in China. Firstly, it investigates the prevalence of unmet LTC needs for three populations which differ according to the extent of LTC needs. Secondly, it examines the impact of having rural or urban hukou registration status and rural or urban residence. The analysis is based on the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) 2013. The broadly, intermediately and narrowly defined LTC population comprises, respectively, 3,682, 1002 and 446 functionally disabled people aged 45 and older. The role of hukou status and rural/urban residence on unmet needs are examined by applying four logistic regression models for each population. We find that rural hukou holders are significantly more likely to have unmet needs in all three populations regardless of their residency. With narrower definitions of the population in need of care, the effects of rural hukou status on unmet needs strengthen. In contrast to earlier studies, our results indicate that it is hukou status rather than place of residence which exacerbates rural-urban disparities in unmet LTC needs. Reducing unmet LTC needs and existing rural-urban disparities therefore requires not only more universal LTC coverage, but also a reduction of the specific access barriers arising from the hukou system.

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  • Zhu, Yumei & Österle, August, 2017. "Rural-urban disparities in unmet long-term care needs in China: The role of the hukou status," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 191(C), pages 30-37.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:191:y:2017:i:c:p:30-37
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.08.025
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Lei, Xiaoyan & Bai, Chen & Hong, Jingpeng & Liu, Hong, 2022. "Long-term care insurance and the well-being of older adults and their families: Evidence from China," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 296(C).
    3. Kang, Lili & Zhao, Guangchuan, 2022. "Financial support for unmet need for personal assistance with daily activities: Implications from China's long-term care insurance pilots," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 45(C).
    4. Ouyang, Yanyan & Cai, Hongbo & Yu, Xuefei & Li, Zijian, 2022. "Capitalization of social infrastructure into China's urban and rural housing values: Empirical evidence from Bayesian Model Averaging," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    5. Luo, Yanan & Yuan, Kexin & Li, Yuxiao & Liu, Yating & Pan, Yao, 2024. "The “spillover effect” of long-term care insurance in China on spouses’ health and well-being," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 340(C).
    6. Feng, Jin & Wang, Zhen & Yu, Yangyang, 2020. "Does long-term care insurance reduce hospital utilization and medical expenditures? Evidence from China," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    7. Yumei Zhu & August Österle, 2019. "China's policy experimentation on long‐term care insurance: Implications for access," International Journal of Health Planning and Management, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(4), pages 1661-1674, October.

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