Are remittances spent in a healthy way? Evidence from Albania

Ermira Hoxha Kalaj

doi:10.5771/1435-2869-2014-2-237

Contents
- Chapter Expand | CollapseAuthorsPage
- 149–151 Editorial 149–151
  - Editorial Bela Galgoczi, Calvin Allen Bela Galgoczi, Calvin Allen
- 153–290 Aufsatz 153–290
  - 153–165 The EU: Breaking the chains of weariness Christophe Solioz Christophe Solioz 153–165
  - 167–174 An end to the lies and self-deception: Scenarios for the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina Jürgen Buxbaum Jürgen Buxbaum 167–174
  - 175–192 The 2014 elections in Bulgaria: Political instability without end Dobrin Kanev Dobrin Kanev 175–192
  - 193–205 Turkey as an energy hub for the Southern Gas Corridor Thomas Batten Thomas Batten 193–205
  - 207–235 Taxation and budgetary policies in the western Balkans Martin Hutsebaut Martin Hutsebaut 207–235
  - 237–266 Are remittances spent in a healthy way? Evidence from Albania Ermira Hoxha Kalaj Ermira Hoxha Kalaj 237–266
  - 267–278 The transformation of remittances from consumption to investment: a challenging strategy to accommodate the future Eduart Lika Eduart Lika 267–278
  - 279–290 Strike action at the forefront of the social partnership agenda Andrea Olsovska, Marek Svec Andrea Olsovska, Marek Svec 279–290
- 291–292 About the authors 291–292
  - About the authors
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SEER Journal for Labour and Social Affairs in Eastern Europe , page 237 - 266

Are remittances spent in a healthy way? Evidence from Albania

Autoren

Ermira Hoxha Kalaj

DOI
- doi.org/10.5771/1435-2869-2014-2-237
- ISSN: 1435-2869
- ISSN online: 2942-3384
Abstract

This article investigates the effect of remittances on health capital accumulation. Total expenditure is divided into expenditure on medicines; and expenditure on visits and laboratory services. An estimation is presented for rural and urban sub-groups. Both instrumental variable and propensity score matching are used to assess the impact of remittances on health capital investment. Households increase their expenditure on medicines and other health services in the presence of remittances. This positive relationship is statistically significant in the case of remittance-receiving households living in rural areas, although the magnitude is lower in the case of total expenditure on visits and laboratory services. However, total expenditure here is likely to have a significant impact on health outcomes given their preventive nature. Remittance flows thus play a heterogeneous role in the decision-making processes of remittance-receiving household members. However, such non-labour income flows may play an important role in supporting expenditures, especially for those living in rural areas.
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