The Effect of Health Environment on Migration Flows
The Effect of Health Environment on Migration Flows

Summary/Abstract: International migration has become more popular recently in the globalization context. The recorded number of international migration cases is much fewer than the actual number in the last few decades. Migration is considered to have various consequences in both origin and destination countries. Understanding the determinants of migration is necessary for long-term sustainable development policies. This study examines a causal relationship between health environment and migration flows by exploiting a panel country-level data set on health indicators and net migration from 1940 to 1987. An increase in life expectancy at birth has led to a decrease in net migration in the whole sample countries as well as in non-poor countries. By using global mortality rate constructed based on information on the reduction in mortality following the epidemiological transition in the 1940s as instrumental variable, 2SLS methodology allows controlling for endogeneity problem. The results are robust even applying various additional tests. Overall, health environment has a negative effect on migration flows.

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