Adoption of mobile money for healthcare utilization and spending in Rural Ghana

Abstract

In this chapter, the authors discuss the potential link between mobile money adoption and health outcomes, which has not received much attention in the existing literature. They empirically examine the effects of mobile money adoption on healthcare utilization and spending of rural households in Ghana. Using data from the Ghana Living Standards Survey, the authors show that mobile money adoption enhances rural households’ healthcare utilization, a finding which is more pronounced in the case of female-headed households. The authors demonstrate that this finding is due to the positive association between mobile money use and the ability of rural households to spend on healthcare.