Health shocks and households’ welfare in Ghana
Does Social Assistance Mitigate the Effects
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6449068 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Desmond Mbe‐nyire Mpuure (0000-0003-1425-1604, University of Alicante), Prince Boakye Frimpong (0000-0002-2829-9257, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, corresponding author), Kwame Ansere Ofori-Mensah (0000-0002-0486-1575, University of Insubria), John Bosco Dramani (0000-0002-3640-2664, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 52-68 |
| Publication date | 2024-10-14 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Seikei ronsō/Review of economics and political science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0387-3285 • E-ISSN: 2631-3561 |
| Publisher | Emerald (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1108/reps-09-2022-0068 |
| OpenAlex | W4403441919 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 33 |
Purpose Health shocks are among the factors that have impeded households from experiencing better welfare. To mitigate the consequences of these shocks, individuals have sought to enrol in a formal insurance scheme or borrow from banks. This study estimates the effects of health shocks on households' welfare while examining the mitigating role of social assistance in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach The study utilized the three-stage least squares and feasible generalized least squares to estimate the impact of health shocks on households' welfare. Findings The authors find that health shocks put households at risk, particularly disability and severe illness, which significantly limits individuals’ ability to smooth consumption to increase welfare. We further find that hospitalization due to illness significantly allows households to increase welfare through consumption. Finally, we find that social assistance has the potential to reduce these adverse effects of shocks conditioned on the type of shock and the outcome variable in question. Research limitations/implications First, we only used cross-sectional data for the two waves and therefore lacked panel data across time for analyses. Second, the data do not provide information on the exact amount of cash received by beneficiaries, so it was quite impossible to measure the exact effect of social assistance on welfare. We could only track whether or not having such assistance could mitigate the effect of a health shock. Practical implications The practical implication of the findings is that Ghana needs to build a resilient health system in order to withstand the health shocks of individuals. Originality/value No study has attempted to investigate the differential effect of health shocks – hospitalization, disability and labour days lost due to illness in Ghana. Our choice is dependent on the fact that these shocks have been an issue for many households in Ghana, thus the need to examine their impact on individual well-being. Second, social assistance has been Ghana’s flagship social protection programme, but what is missing in the literature is whether this programme is capable of reducing the effect of health shocks faced by beneficiaries’ households in Ghana
Demographic economics · Development economics · Economic growth · Economics · Political science · Social Assistance · Social Welfare · Socioeconomics · Welfare · Agricultural risk and resilience · Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations · Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare
Insuring Consumption Against Illness
The Role of Securities in the Optimal Allocation of Risk-bearing
The economic consequences of health shocks
Economic and social upgrading in global production networks
Disability and Household Welfare in Ghana
Weather Shocks, Coping Strategies and Household Well-being
Economic impacts of health shocks on households in low and middle income countries
Assessing the catastrophic effects of out-of-pocket healthcare payments prior to the uptake of a nationwide health insurance scheme in Ghana
Effect of a health shock on working hours and health care usage
Cash transfers, social protection and poverty reduction
Social assistance and household consumption in urban China
The Livelihood Impacts of Cash Transfers in Sub-Saharan Africa
Disability and Poverty in Developing Countries
Health shocks and consumption smoothing in rural households
Economic vulnerability to health shocks and coping strategies
In Sickness and in Health
Health Shocks and Consumption Smoothing
Consumption Insurance
Is Consumption Insured against Illness? Evidence on Vulnerability of Households to Health Shocks in Rural Ethiopia
Gender and locational dimensions of shocks on household welfare
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |