Health on the Move: The Impact of Poverty Alleviation Relocation on Healthcare Utilization in China
利用中国16县农村家庭面板数据，发现扶贫搬迁使家庭门诊和住院次数分别增加24.6%和36.9%，但未显著提高总医疗支出，说明搬迁改善了就医可及性并降低了单次费用。
Limited utilization of healthcare services remains a persistent challenge for poor populations in many countries. This study examines the impact of China's Poverty Alleviation Relocation Program (PARP) on healthcare utilization, utilizing panel data from rural households in 16 counties across eight provinces. Employing a difference-in-differences (DID) framework, we find that relocation leads to a 24.6% increase in clinic visits and a 36.9% increase in hospital visits per household, helping prevent minor illnesses from escalating. Despite higher utilization, relocation does not significantly raise total medical expenditure, out-of-pocket medical costs, or reimbursement levels, due to reduced per-visit costs. Mechanism analysis suggests that relocation improves access to healthcare facilities and boosts household income. Our findings highlight the critical role of combining housing mobility with healthcare system improvements to promote healthcare equity, offering important insights for the design of poverty alleviation strategies in other developing country contexts where access to healthcare remains a critical constraint.