HEALTH AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC INEQUALITIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION

The aim of this paper is to analyse socio-economic inequalities in the European Union and their influence on health care. The empirical analysis is based mainly on data from the European Community Household Panel which contains data homogeneous across European Union countries and make comparisons possible. In addition, the functional form of the relationship between income and health, considering the impact of socioeconomic status among individuals whose medical needs are similar, is studied.

SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS AND HEALTH: EVIDENCE FROM THE ECHP

In this paper, the effects of socioeconomic characteristics (gender, age, education level, marital status, income, occupational and health status, household size and social relationships) on individuals´ health status in Spain from 1994 to 2001 are analysed. The estimations are carried out using ordered probit models and new data from the whole waves of the European Community Household Panel (ECHP) have been used. The results indicate that personal characteristics, education level, income as well as health status and social relationships have strong influence on self-assessed health.

Obesity and socio-economic inequalities in spain: evidence from the ECHP

This paper explores the relationship between obesity, measured by the Body Mass Index (BMI), and socio-demographic characteristics in Spain. Empirical work is based on data from the European Community Household Panel (ECHP). The results obtained through probit models show that factors such as age, education, marital status, health status and some economic data are relevant in explaining whether an individual is obese or not.ECHP.

Twisted equivariant K-theory of compact Lie group actions with maximal rank isotropy

We consider twisted equivariant K--theory for actions of a compact Lie group $G$ on a space $X$ where all the isotropy subgroups are connected and of maximal rank. We show that the associated rational spectral sequence \`a la Segal has a simple $E_2$--term expressible as invariants under the Weyl group of $G$. Namely, if $T$ is a maximal torus of $G$, they are invariants of the $\pi_1(X^T)$-equivariant Bredon cohomology of the universal cover of $X^T$ with suitable coefficients. In the case of the inertia stack $\Lambda Y$ this term can be expressed using the cohomology of $Y^T$ and algebraic invariants associated to the Lie group and the twisting. A number of calculations are provided. In particular, we recover the rational Verlinde algebra when $Y=\{*\}$.Comment: To appear in Journal of Mathematical Physics. Some mistakes have been corrected in Section

Trends in income inequality in the European Union: implications for health inequalities

The comparative analysis of income inequality across countries has acquired increasing importance in recent years. This paper is divided in two parts. The first one is focused on the analysis of income inequality in the European Union. To carry out this task, we use different models based on Lorenz curves and quantiles functions and different equivalence scales. The European Community Household Panel Data are used. The second part of the paper is focused on explaining the differences in income and health inequalities across European countries. In particular several hypotheses concerning the economic determinants of health inequalities are studied. KEY WORDS Income inequality, Lorenz curves, quantile functions, equivalence scales, European Community Household Panel, health inequalities