Does environmental pollution inhibit urbanization in China? A new perspective through residents’ medical and health costs

Health problems caused by environmental pollution may affect the process of urbanization in China. Therefore, this study, against the backdrop of promoting new-type urbanization, evaluates the level of China's urbanization comprehensively using the fully arranged polygon graphical index method. It uses a dynamic threshold panel model to study the potential non-linear relationship between environmental pollution (wastewater, sulfur dioxide, and solid wastes) and urbanization under different health costs of residents. Our findings show that environmental pollution has inhibited the improvement of comprehensive urbanization, population urbanization, economic urbanization, and living conditions urbanization, but promoted living environment urbanization, in China. It is worth noting that with the rise in residents' health costs, the inhibiting effect of environmental pollution on comprehensive urbanization, population urbanization, economic urbanization, and living conditions urbanization in China has gradually increased, but on living environment urbanization, it has decreased. •This study quantitatively investigates the impact of environmental pollution on the urbanization in China.•Residents' medical and health costs is an important moderating variable.•We use fully arranged polygon graphical index method to evaluate urbanization.•We employ dynamic threshold panel model to examine the possible non-linear relationship.•Environmental pollution affects the urbanization through affecting the residents' medical and health cost.