Does pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration increase residents' health expenditure?

Pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration has become a trend of industrial distribution in China. Does pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration significantly increase residents' health expenditure? By clarifying the environmental effect, economic effect and public service effect of pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration on residents' health expenditure, this paper combined with provincial data to prove the environmental effect, economic effect and public service effect. The results show that: (1) Every 1 % increase in pollution-intensive industries will reduce rural residents' health expenditure by 1.1844 % and increase the health expenditure of urban residents by 1.206 %. (2) The pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration increases the health expenditure by expanding the scale of pollution, reduces the health expenditure by promoting the technological innovation. (3) Pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration increases the health expenditure by enhancing residents' income and reduces the health expenditure by enhancing employment rate. (4) Pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration increases the health expenditure by improving medical services and reduces the residents' health expenditure by promoting the construction of environmental infrastructure. (5) There are a single threshold and a double threshold effects of pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration on health expenditure of rural residents and urban residents, respectively. When the location entropy is higher than 0.4669, the pollutionintensive industrial agglomeration can reduce residents' health expenditure. When the location entropy is less than 0.9861 or greater than 1.027, the pollution-intensive industrial agglomeration increases urban residents' health expenditure. The conclusion of this paper is of great significance in adjusting the distribution of pollution-intensive industries and increasing the health expenditure of residents.