Is health capital formation good for long-term economic growth? - Panel Granger-causality evidence for OECD countries

A large body of both theoretical and empirical literature has affirmed a positive impact of human capital accumulation in the form of health on economic growth. For rich countries, however, the existing empirical evidence is mixed. This paper revisits the question whether health capital formation stimulates GDP growth in rich countries applying a new empirical methodology: the panel Granger-causality framework. The results do not lend support to the view that health capital formation fosters long-term economic growth in the OECD area.