Does Rapid and Sustained Economic Growth Lead to Convergence in Health Resources: The Case of China From 1980 to 2010

Liang, Di; Zhang, Donglan; Huang, Jiayan; Schweitzer, Stuart

1990s, whereas after 2000, the falling trend is ambiguous (see Figure 1 ). The falling sigma value indicates that provincial mean levels of physicians per thousand people became closer to each other from 1980s to 2000 (see Figure 2 ). For beds per thousand people, no convergence is observed in the 1980s. Weak convergence in the 1990s is found, whereas convergence after 2003 is seen (see Figure 3 ). Further study on the mean number of beds per thousand people at the provincial level probably explains the trends described above (see Figure 4 ). Average beds per thousand people in Eastern China, Central China, and Western China were all below 2.5 in the early 1980s. From then on, the number of beds in Eastern China increased steadily in the 1980s and stayed almost stable in the late 1990s. However, in Central China and Western China, bed supply increased slightly in the 1980s and early 1990s. But from the late 1990s to 2003, beds per thousand people in Central China and Western China decreased. After 2003, all 3 regions experienced a sharp increase in average number of beds. In other words, the gap between Eastern China and the other 2 regions widened from the 1980s, reducing convergence.