No Significant Change in Income-Based Health Inequalities in the Netherlands Despite Rising Life Expectancy

A recent analysis examining health and income trends in the Netherlands explores how improvements in life expectancy relate to inequality in health outcomes. Over the past two decades, life expectancy has increased, and the variation in age at death has narrowed. This pattern is often interpreted as a sign of reduced overall health inequality in the population. However, at the same time, research has suggested that the income–mortality gradient has widened, meaning that higher-income groups may be experiencing greater health gains compared to lower-income groups.

To investigate this contradiction, researchers used data from the longitudinal Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), focusing on physical and mental health outcomes across different income levels. Contrary to concerns about increasing inequality, the empirical findings show no significant changes in income-based differences in either physical or mental health over the last twenty years in the Netherlands.

The results suggest that while mortality patterns may show stronger income-related disparities, these do not necessarily translate directly into measurable differences in broader health outcomes such as physical or mental well-being. The authors note that more detailed studies using larger datasets, particularly administrative data, are needed to fully understand how income inequality affects health over time and to clarify whether subtle changes may be missed in smaller survey-based samples.

National Bureau of Economic Research. (2026). Health inequalities among retirees in the Netherlands (Working Paper No. 35097). https://www.nber.org/papers/w35097 NBER Working Paper 35097