Spatiotemporal Evolution Analysis of the Coupling Coordination Degree Between China’s Health Industry and Digital Economy
Shuxin Leng, Lingdi Zhao · Sustainability · 2026
The deep integration of the health industry and the digital economy represents a crucial pathway toward a sustainable and resilient future, as it enhances the competitiveness and promotes the orderly expansion of the health sector. Utilizing provincial panel data of 30 provinces in China from 2011 to 2022, this study employs the entropy method and a coupling coordination model to quantify the coupling coordination degree between these sectors. Kernel density estimation and center of gravity–standard deviational ellipse analysis reveal spatiotemporal evolutionary patterns. Key findings include: ① Significant regional disparities exist in the development levels of both the health industry and the digital economy, with notable intra-regional variations among provinces. ② The coupling and coordination level of the health industry and digital economy development across China and within each region have shown a continuous growth trend. The regional levels are in the order of East > West > Central > Northeast, while the regional growth rates are East > Central > West > Northeast. Moreover, a polarization trend has emerged in the central and western regions. ③ The center of gravity of the spatial coupling coordination degree across the entire territory of China shows a clustering trend of moving towards the southeast. The spatial distribution pattern of the coupling coordination degree is in an east-northwest to west-southeast direction. The eastern and northeastern regions, respectively, show a dispersed and clustered trend of moving towards the southwest, while the central and western regions all show a clustered trend of moving towards the southeast. Based on this, policy suggestions are put forward for the deep integration and coordinated development of the health industry and the digital economy, with the aim of leveraging digital innovation to build a health sector that is socially inclusive, economically viable, and environmentally sustainable in the long term.