Abstract
There have been obstacles for internal migrants in China in accessing local public health services for some time. This study aimed to estimate the utilization of local public health services and its determinants among internal migrants. Data were from the 2014 and 2015 nationally representative cross-sectional survey of internal migrants in China. Multivariate logistic regressions were used to estimate the relationship between socioeconomic, migration, and demographic characteristics and public health services utilization. Our results showed that internal migrants in more developed eastern regions used less public health services. Those with higher socioeconomic status were more likely to use public health services. The years of living in the city of residence were positively associated with the utilization of public health services. Compared to migration within the city, migration across provinces significantly reduced the probability of using health records (OR = 0.88, 95% CI: 0.86–0.90), health education (OR = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.94–1.00), and health education on non–communicable diseases (OR = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.89–0.95) or through the Internet (OR = 0.96, 95% CI: 0.94–0.99). This study concludes that public health services coverage for internal migrants has seen great improvement due to government subsidies. Internal migrants with lower socioeconomic status and across provinces need to be targeted. More attention should be given to the local government in the developed eastern regions in order to narrow the regional gaps.
Highlights
During the last three decades, the number of internal migrants has been increasing dramatically in China, reaching 245 million and accounting for 18% of the total population in 2016 [1]
In 2014, about 90% of internal migrants were either employed or self-employed, and this proportion dropped to 82% in 2015
Our study showed the great improvement of public health services coverage for internal migrants
Summary
During the last three decades, the number of internal migrants has been increasing dramatically in China, reaching 245 million and accounting for 18% of the total population in 2016 [1]. In China, internal migrants (i.e., the floating population) are defined as those who live outside their cities of Hukou registration. The transfer of Hukou status from rural into urban or from one place to another place is difficult for citizens when people migrate [5]. The social welfare and healthcare benefits in urban areas are only available to local residents with registered Hukou, but not to the internal migrants [6]. The health of internal migrants has not been a focus of the urban healthcare system
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