The Alleviating Effect of the Pension Insurance System on the Health of the Elderly When the Spouse Suffers from Major Chronic Diseases

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-585-0_86How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Pension Insurance; Chronic Disease; Health Shock; Aging; Double Difference Method

Abstract

China has entered a deeply aging society, and the high incidence of chronic diseases poses a serious challenge to the health of the elderly group, especially through the burden of care within the family and economic pressure. Based on the data of the China Health and Pension Tracking Survey (CHARLS) from 2011 to 2020, this paper uses a double difference model to analyze the alleviating effect of pension insurance on the impact of major chronic diseases (stroke, heart disease, etc.) on the health of the elderly by using a double difference model. The results show that the spouse’s major chronic illness significantly reduces the mental health of the elderly, worsens depressive symptoms, and slightly affects their ability to perform activities of daily living and cognitive function. Pension insurance can effectively buffer this health shock, especially the most significant protective effect on mental health. The mechanism analysis shows that pension insurance mainly plays a role by providing stable economic sources, reducing the pressure of medical expenditure, and reducing the burden of care. The findings of this paper provide an important basis for improving the pension insurance system and formulating targeted health support policies, which are of positive significance for improving the health level of the elderly.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Saiwai Yu
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/06/18
TI  - The Alleviating Effect of the Pension Insurance System on the Health of the Elderly When the Spouse Suffers from Major Chronic Diseases
BT  - Proceedings of the 2025 International Conference on Hybrid Commerce, Human Capital, and Economic Dynamics (ICHCH 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 761
EP  - 769
SN  - 2352-5428
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-585-0_86
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-585-0_86
ID  - Yu2026
ER  -