Work

Bank presence and health

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This article examines whether more bank presence in underserved areas can improve households’ health. Leveraging a 2005 Reserve Bank of India policy and a regression discontinuity design, I demonstrate that 5 years post-policy, treatment districts have twenty-seven more bank branches than control districts. This expansion increases household employment and access to savings accounts, enhancing health investments. On the healthcare supply side, hospitals utilize more credit and expand services. Six years after the policy, households in treatment districts are nineteen percentage points less likely to suffer from non-chronic illnesses in a given month. Chronic diseases remain unaffected.

Source: Review of Finance

DOI: 10.1093/rof/rfaf032

Author: Kim Fe Cramer

Institution: London School of Economics and Political Science

Language: English

Topic: Microfinance and Financial Inclusion

Subfield: Economics and Econometrics

Field: Economics, Econometrics and Finance

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: No poverty, Good health and well-being, Decent work and economic growth, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,431