Does health capital have differential effects on economic growth?

Abstract

Investigating the impact of health capital disaggregated by gender on economic growth in a sample of 210 countries over the period 1990 to 2008, this study suggests that the influence of health capital across countries cannot be generalized. The results for the full sample indicate that health capital does not have a robust and significant effect on economic growth unless through their interactions with health expenditure and education. The results disaggregated by income group reveal that health capital has a positive robust influence on economic growth in high and upper middle income economies. In low and low middle income economies, health capital gains statistical significance only through their interaction with education and health expenditure. Increased fertility rates act to reduce the influence of health capital on economic growth.

Keywords:

• health capital
• life expectancy
• survival rate
• economic growth
• panel data

JEL Classification:

• O11
• O15
• O57