Social transfers and the health status of mothers in Norway and Canada.
The unconditional health status of lone mothers is worse than that of married mothers in Canada but not in Norway. Even controlling for demographic characteristics and health behaviours in Canada, the health status of lone mothers is worse. Only after we control for income does the differential in health status between married and lone mothers in Canada disappear. An important difference between the countries is that lone mothers are much less likely to be poor in Norway because they receive more generous social transfers. A simulation which involves 'giving Canadian mothers Norwegian transfers,' illustrates the possibility of significant gains in socioeconomic status and health of poor mothers in Canada.
Curtis
Lori
L
Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Phipps
Shelley
S
D000328:Adult; D002170:Canada; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006291:Health Policy / Q000639:trends*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D017533:Marital Status; D008875:Middle Aged; D009035:Mothers; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009664:Norway; D011788:Quality of Life; D012042:Registries; D018570:Risk Assessment; D015406:Single Parent; D012923:Social Class; D012946:Social Welfare / Q000191:economics*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors