Differences in healthy life expectancy between older migrants and non-migrants in three European countries: Trends between 2001 and 2011

The share of older migrants in western Europe is rising steadily. Differences in health between older migrants and non-migrants have not been studied much. Our aim is to analyse health and mortality differences between older migrants and non-migrants in Belgium, the Netherlands, and England and Wales, and to assess their change over time. Population, mortality and health data derive from registers, census or surveys, depending on the country. Healthy life expectancy at age 50 is calculated by gender in 2001 and 2011, distinguishing western from non-western migrants. Decomposition techniques are applied to disentangle to what extent differences in healthy life expectancy are attributable to either differences in mortality or morbidity. Healthy life expectancy at age 50 is higher in the Netherlands than in Belgium. In both countries, older migrants, especially non-western, have poorer health than non-migrants. The proportion of remaining healthy years to life expectancy at age 50 has compressed only for older non-western migrants in the Netherlands, slowly reducing the health gap. Health inequalities between different origin groups are mainly due to differences in self-rated health. Therefore, potential health interventions intending to reduce health inequalities between older migrants and non-migrants should consider all dimensions of health.