Abstract.Day3.Ambade

Upward Intergenerational Economic Transfers for Health

Mayanka Ambade, Avnish Pal, Shalem Balla, and Laishram Ladusingh

Intra-household economic transfers usually involve resource reallocation from older to younger generations. However, in cases of chronic illnesses, such transfers may reverse direction. This study uses longitudinal data from the Indian Human Development Survey to examine how chronic health conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancer affect household consumption patterns. Focusing on expenditures for health, education, food, and non-food items (e.g., leisure), the analysis applies the full insurance model also accounting for alternative healthcare financing sources. Findings show that households with chronic illnesses struggle to smooth consumption, resulting in consumption restructuring. the greatest impact is seen in leisure spending, followed by reductions in education and food expenditures. the study also aims to quantify the consumption restricting of education at national levels across socio-economic categories to highlight upward intergenerational transfers at the national level.