Avoidable Mortality in the German Baltic Sea Region Since Reunification: Convergence or Persistent Disparities?

ABSTRACT: The consequences of political reunification for health and mortality have the unique character of a 'natural experiment'. This is particularly true for the formerly divided German Baltic Sea region due to its cultural and geographic commonalities. This paper ascertains the changes and differences in premature mortality at ages 0-74 in urban and rural areas of the German states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV) and Schleswig-Holstein (SH) since reunification and the contribution made by 'avoidable' mortality. Using official cause-of-death data, the effectiveness of health care and health policies was measured based on the concept of avoidable mortality in terms of both amenable and preventable conditions. Methods of decomposition and standardisation were employed in order to erase the composit

SUBMITTER: Muhlichen M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6639439 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature