Social differences in life expectancy and health care costs over the life course

Based on the educational structure of the Austrian population the health status and the use of health services in connection with life expectancy are analysed. The combination of the survival probabilities and the group- and age-specific cost profiles yields the average health care costs of a cohort over the course of its life. The cumulative health care costs of different educational groups are compared by looking at the life course. The health care costs of different socio-economic groups are calculated using a (dynamic) microsimulation model. The model makes it possible to simultaneously take into account changes in life expectancy, age- and education-specific differences in expenditure, and the changing composition of the Austrian population according to age and education.