Does Community Health Services Affect Life Satisfaction Among Older Adults? Evidence from China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey

As population aging intensifies, community health services have become a crucial mechanism for enhancing the quality of life among older adults. This study examined the impact of community health services utilization on life satisfaction among older adults. The results show that life satisfaction among users of community health services is significantly higher than that of non-users, and this positive association is consistent with a causal interpretation. However, the returns to community health services utilization are heterogeneous: individuals who are more likely to use community health services tend to benefit more, indicating a pattern of positive selection on gains. Policy simulations suggest that policy interventions aimed at increasing community health services utilization among individuals with initially lower utilization propensity are more effective in improving life satisfaction. These findings support a causal interpretation of the relationship between community health services utilization and life satisfaction among older adults and provide practical implications for policymakers seeking to improve the provision of community health services and promote life satisfaction in the older population.