Internal migration and health stratification in urban China

Abstract

This study examines health stratification in contemporary urban China in light of rapid internal migration and evolving socio-institutional arrangements in the society. Much of this has been linked to the hukou system or household registration system which has created a stratification system based on place of origin (rural or urban) and occupation (agricultural or non-agricultural). The research question was probed using a nationally representative survey. The results show that as a group, migrants in urban areas were healthier than urban natives, and residents with non-agricultural hukou were healthier than those having agricultural hukou. Institutional impacts on health status were largely indirect, as manifested partly through self-selective mechanisms of migration and partly through socio-economic stratification in urban society. Nevertheless, institutional arrangements had salient direct impacts on individuals' access to health resources, which were robust even after controlling for related demographic and socio-economic factors.