Health, income inequality and poverty: A review on developed and developing countries

Income inequality and poverty are among the socio-economic determinants of health. These variables play an important role in shaping health outcomes and inequalities between different segments of the population. Increasing income inequality may negatively affect the health outcomes of relatively low-income earners. Similarly, the phenomenon of poverty, which is directly related to income, leads to the inability of the population to meet their basic needs and thus to deteriorating health status. In this context, the main purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of poverty and income inequality on health output in developed and developing countries. In this study, two separate models for developed and developing countries are analyzed with the Driscoll-Kraay estimator using data covering the period 2004-2019. The first model analyzes the impact of income inequality on health, while the second model analyzes the impact of poverty on health outcomes. Both models include control variables with empirically proven health effects such as GDP per capita, unemployment, air pollution, education and alcohol consumption. The findings from the analysis of the first model with the Driscoll-Kraay estimator show that income inequality has a negative impact on health output in both developed and developing countries. Similarly, the findings from the estimation of the second model reveal that poverty has a negative impact on health inequality in both developed and developing countries. Considering the findings, it can be suggested that countries should implement policies to prevent income inequality and poverty in order to achieve better health outcomes. These policies to reduce poverty and income inequality will contribute to longer and healthier lives for all segments of the population.