Estimating the spatial correlation and convergence of China's healthcare resources allocation: evidence from the Yangtze River Delta Region

BACKGROUND: China’s imbalanced allocation of healthcare resources mainly arises from urban–rural and intercity differences, the solution of which has been the goal of reforms during the past decades. Estimating the spatial correlation and convergence could help to understand the impact of China’s fast-evolving medical market and the latest healthcare reforms. METHODS: The entropy weight method was used to construct a healthcare resource supply index (HRS) by using data of 41cities in a cluster in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) from 2007 to 2019. The Dagum Gini coefficient, kernel density estimation, Moran's I, and LISA cluster map were used to characterize the spatiotemporal evolution and agglomeration of healthcare resources, and then a spatial panel model was used to perform β convergence estimation by incorporating the spatial effect, city heterogeneity, and healthcare reforms. RESULTS: Healthcare resources supply in the YRD region increases significantly and converges rapidly. There is a significant spatial correlation and agglomeration between provinces and cities, and a significant spatial spillover effect is also found in β convergence. No evidence is found that the latest healthcare reforms have an impact on the balanced allocation and convergence of healthcare resources. CONCLUSION: China’s long-term investment in past decades has yielded a more balanced allocation and intercity convergence of healthcare resources. However, the latest healthcare reforms do not contribute to the balanced allocation of healthcare resources from the supply-side, and demand-side analysis is needed in the future studies.