Health inequities among adolescents in three types of welfare states
Summary
Health inequities are a problem across the globe, both for adults and young people. Despite
technological advancements in health care and the rollout of extensive welfare states, health
outcomes are for many related to their socioeconomic position. This is considered one of the
greatest disappointments of public health. The present study examined to what extent different
types of welfare states succeed in diminishing health inequities among adolescents. In all
welfare state types, a higher socioeconomic status was significantly associated with better
health outcomes. Furthermore, it was found that in the conservative welfare regime the
association between socioeconomic status and adolescent health is smallest, followed by the
social democratic welfare regime and the liberal welfare regime. Together, these findings might
suggest that countries with a conservative welfare regime are in the best position to reduce
health inequities among adolescents, whereas the liberal regime is least successful.