The effects of economic instability on infant, neonatal, and postneonatal mortality rates: evidence from Taiwan

This paper uses a panel data set comprising 23 cities for the years 1979-2002 in Taiwan and a fixed-effects model to find evidence of the effect of economic instability on infant, neonatal, and postneonatal mortality rates. In addition, the effects of income, demographic factors, and the availability of medical resources are also examined in relation to the mortalities. The most important finding is that infant, neonatal, and postneonatal mortality rates move counter-cyclically with the city unemployment rate in Taiwan. The provision of national health insurance is also found to have a positive impact on the health of infants in Taiwan. Finally, the impact of economic instability on the infant, neonatal, and postneonatal mortality rates is found to be the strongest in the eastern part of Taiwan, which is the region with the fewest health care resources. The analysis provides evidence of the effects of economic instability on the infant, neonatal, and postneonatal mortality rates in a developing country, which are comparable to those of other countries and may provide some important insights into this issue.