The relationship between macroeconomics and health may either be viewed from the angle that good health is the natural consequence of economic development or from the perspective that economic development is dependent on good health. In the first instance, a country with an economically progressive economy can afford to institute quality health care, build the best hospitals, and train or hire the best physicians. In the second instance, the economy will grow or develop at a faster rate if its citizens are healthy.
An example of the relationship between macroeconomics and health can be seen in the case of a country with a strong economy. The government of such a country will be able to provide the best health framework that will guarantee optimum health for its citizens, and consequently, its workforce. This kind of framework may include the provision of subsidized healthcare, such as the type found in the United States in the form of Medicaid. This type of health welfare program is only possible in countries that are economically developed and able to sustain these programs.
Another way in which macroeconomics and health are related is in the relationship of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) level of a country and the way it affects the ability of citizens to afford quality healthcare. Countries with a high and sustained GDPs are economically developed, and the citizens are usually able to afford better healthcare than those in countries with a low GDP. Such economies also have supporting framework in the form of health insurance, which the citizens can buy to ensure that they will be able to afford more expensive medical procedures.
Macroeconomics and health are linked by the effect that high levels of poverty have on the citizens of an economically backward nation. The government of such a country will not be able to provide any kind of welfare for the citizens. Indeed, these governments may not be able to provide basic amenities like clean water, good hospitals and a well-regulated food industry. Such a lack affects the health of the citizens in a negative manner, which leads to a reduction in productivity. This is something people in economically developed countries often take for granted.
A lack of good health amenities decreases the workforce through incidents like increased infant and maternal mortality, and death from various diseases. Some of these diseases may be curable like malaria, or preventable like cholera. Diseases such as this may take the lives of people in these countries due to poverty, which makes it hard for people to afford the necessary drugs and other healthcare.