PhD defence M. (Marlies) Bär

Brief summary of the doctoral thesis:

Populations are increasingly growing older across the entire developed world. While these ageing populations are partly a result of falling mortality rates at older ages, indicating improvements in overall population health, they also raise questions about the distribution of mortality improvements across socioeconomic groups. The recent COVID-19 pandemic further amplified these concerns as it had a large sudden impact on mortality, particularly affecting the old and poorer population. Beyond considerations about mortality inequality, ageing populations bring challenges regarding the sustainability of care provision for the growing oldest age groups. One of the central policy questions is how access to high quality care for the increasing number of older individuals can be ensured without exhausting the public budget or workforce. Enhancing the efficiency of care for the older population may be a potential way to address this issue. This thesis explores these areas by studying: i) income-related inequality in mortality at older ages; and ii) efficiency in nursing home care.