Migration and Health Constraints in China: a social strata analysis

Given the massive scale of internal migration in China, access to health services and other health issues not only matter to rural-urban migrants but also have important implications to broad public health concerns. Based on a case study of a particular migrant enclave in Beijing, the study investigates issues concerning environmental health risks of migrants, their health seeking behaviours, and the constraints they encountered in accessing health services with respect to the social strata among migrants. It is argued that the main obstacles to accessing health services are not only the shortage of financial resources among rural-urban migrants, but lie in the institutional blind spot regarding health security provision, rural-urban dualism and a unique household registration system in China. Implications for policy changes are also discussed.