Health Inequality in Welfare States: The Role of Assets as "Safety Nets” - Paradoxes from Cross-National Analysis

• In Event: Economic Sociology Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Roundtable 5: Financialization, Wealth, and Inequality

Abstract

This study examines health inequality by social class in underdeveloped welfare states, focusing on assets as an economic buffer or "safety net." Political economy literature often positions assets as alternatives to state welfare; however, if assets indeed provide economic stability where state support is limited, could they effectively mitigate health risks associated with low income? Existing studies have primarily focused on income and employment status while overlooking the role of wealth, particularly household assets. This study builds on welfare state and social determinants of health literature to conceptualize assets as a “private safety net” that compensates for weak public welfare systems.

Preliminary analysis of the U.S. Health and Retirement Study (HRS) has already identified a paradoxical pattern where, for the low-asset group, the probability of poor health increases as income rises. This finding necessitates a deeper cross-national investigation to determine whether such protective effects of wealth are more pronounced in low-welfare states or if they are unique to the U.S. institutional context. Using merged data from HRS and SHARE, this study tests (1) whether assets alleviate the negative impact of low income on physical and mental health internationally and (2) whether this alleviation is inversely proportional to the level of national welfare. 2-level ordered logistic regression models with interaction terms are employed to analyze how the relationship between assets and health varies across welfare regimes. Findings will provide critical implications for policies addressing health disparities through social welfare expansion and asset-based interventions.

Author

• Hyunji Lim, The Ohio State University