Reshaping Migrant-Native Health Disparities: evidence from the hukou reform in China

• Hukou reform improves migrants’ health by 3.1 percentage points. • The reform increases health insurance uptake and strengthens migrants’ social capital. • Annual health returns range from 2.39% to 3.73%, driven by lower medical expenses and higher labor income. This study examines the health effects of relaxing internal migration restrictions in China. By utilizing temporal and spatial variations in the reform rollout at the prefecture level across cities, we find that the reform significantly improved migrants’ relative health. The mechanisms primarily driving these improvements include increased insurance utilization and enhanced social capital. These results underscore the significant positive impact of relaxed internal migration policies on overall social welfare.