Constraints on Health and Health Services Access: One Class of Migrants?

This chapter is the first empirical analysis chapter. Drawing on the data gathered from the fieldwork, this chapter gives an original account of constraints on health and health service access in respect of the social strata of rural–urban migrants. After the discussion of three strata among migrants, the chapter analyses the financial reasons for the hierarchical health access and pays particular attention to the specific constraints on health and health services access for the majority of migrants. A detailed examination of illegal private clinics which reflects the constraints for accessing public health facilities reveals another side of the health choice among migrants. This chapter also assesses the institutional factors which make all rural–urban migrants unequal in the health service system in China.