Non-Linearities in the Relationship between Aggregate Income and Mortality Rates

We investigate the relationship between mortality rates and income per capita in Mexico. We employ a state-level panel approach and analyze overall and disaggregated age-adjusted mortality rates. The use of a fixed-effect estimator allows us to reduce potential bias from unobserved effects that may be present in cross-sectional studies of multiple countries. We do not find a statistically significant relationship between the overall mortality rate and income per capita. However, there is significant variation in the relationship for mortality categories and subcategories. Our results may provide insight into the mechanisms that drive the relationship between mortality and income.