In this article,we comment on the work put forth by Wu et al regarding the investigation of oesophageal cancer-specific mortality for a cohort of patients from Chongqing University Cancer Hospital.We specifically focu...In this article,we comment on the work put forth by Wu et al regarding the investigation of oesophageal cancer-specific mortality for a cohort of patients from Chongqing University Cancer Hospital.We specifically focused on the implications of public health plans such as Urban Employee Basic Medical Insurance(UEBMI)and Urban Resident Basic Medical Insurance as well as out-of-pocket ratios on patient treatment plans regarding whether they pursue surgical interventions or therapeutic treatments such as chemotherapy.While Wu et al put forth potential explanations for why patients with the UEBMI plan surprisingly had a 23.30%increased risk of oesophageal cancer-specific death,more analysis is needed to alleviate cancer burden within this group.Although it is likely that patients covered by Urban Resident Basic Medical Insurance and higher out-ofpocket ratios have stronger self-recovery awareness,more work must be done to improve outcomes for people with the UEBMI plan while simultaneously implementing international and domestic initiatives to better emphasize cancer prevention and early detection.Lastly,future research must explore the relationship between Serious Illness Medical Insurance as well as the New Rural Cooperative Medical System on the mortality rate of oesophageal cancer patients in rural China,where disease burden is significantly higher than urban areas.By unifying these public health insurance schemes,officials can significantly alleviate economic burden of treatment and better prognosis for patients with oesophageal cancer.展开更多
China’s healthcare system faces increasing challenges,including surging medical costs,resource allocation imbalances favoring large hospitals,and ineffective referral mechanisms.The lack of a unified strategy integra...China’s healthcare system faces increasing challenges,including surging medical costs,resource allocation imbalances favoring large hospitals,and ineffective referral mechanisms.The lack of a unified strategy integrating standardized coverage with personalized payment compounds these issues.To this end,this study proposes a risk-sharing reform strategy that combines equal coverage for the same disease(ECSD)with an individualized out-of-pocket(I-OOP)model.Specifically,the study employs a Markov model to capture patient transitions across health states and care levels.The findings show that ECSD and I-OOP enhance equity by standardizing disease coverage while tailoring costs to patient income and facility type.This approach alleviates demand on high-tier hospitals,promoting primary care utilization and enabling balanced resource distribution.The study’s findings provide a reference for policymakers and healthcare administrators by presenting a scalable framework that is aligned with China’s development goals with the aim of fostering an efficient,sustainable healthcare system that is adaptable to regional needs.展开更多
Objectives This paper aims to investigate the effects of enrollment in the Ethiopian community-based health insurance(CBHI)scheme on household preventive care activities and the timing of treatment-seeking behavior fo...Objectives This paper aims to investigate the effects of enrollment in the Ethiopian community-based health insurance(CBHI)scheme on household preventive care activities and the timing of treatment-seeking behavior for illness symptoms.There is growing concern about the financial sustainability of CBHI schemes in developing countries.However,few empirical studies have identified potential contributors,including ex-ante and ex-post moral hazards.Methods We implement a household fixed-effect panel data regression model,drawing on three rounds of household survey data collected face to face in districts where CBHI scheme is operational and in districts where it is not operational in Ethiopia.Results The findings show that enrolment in CBHI does not significantly influence household behaviour regarding preventive care activities such as water treatment before drinking and handwashing before meals.However,CBHI significantly increases delay in treatment-seeking behaviour for diseases symptoms.Particularly,on average,we estimate about 4-6 h delay for malaria symptoms,a little above 4 h for tetanus,and 10-11 h for tuberculosis among the insured households.Conclusions While there is evidence that CBHI improve the utilization of outpatient or primary care services,our study suggests that insured members may wait longer before visiting health facilities.This delay could be partly due to moral hazard problems,as insured households,particularly those from rural areas,may consider the opportunity costs associated with visiting health facilities for minor symptoms.Overall,it is essential to identify the primary causes of delays in seeking medical services and implement appropriate interventions to encourage insured individuals to seek early medical attention.展开更多
One of the most significant annual expenses that a person has is their health insurance coverage. Health insurance accounts for one-third of GDP, and everyone needs medical treatment to varying degrees. Changes in med...One of the most significant annual expenses that a person has is their health insurance coverage. Health insurance accounts for one-third of GDP, and everyone needs medical treatment to varying degrees. Changes in medicine, pharmaceutical trends, and political factors are only a few of the many factors that cause annual fluctuations in healthcare costs. This paper describes how a system may analyse a person’s medical history to display their insurance plans and make predictions about their health insurance premiums. The performance of four ML models—XGBoost, Lasso, KNN, and Ridge—is evaluated using R2-score and RMSE. The analysis of medical health insurance cost prediction using Lasso regression, Ridge regression, and K-Nearest Neighbours (KNN), and XGBoost (XGB) highlights notable differences in performance. KNN has the lowest R2-score of 55.21 and an RMSE of 4431.1, indicating limited predictive ability. Ridge Regression improves on this by an R2-score of 78.38 but has a higher RMSE of 4652.06. Lasso Regression slightly edges out Ridge with an R2-score of 79.78, yet it suffers from an advanced RMSE of 5671.6. In contrast, XGBoost excels with the highest R2-score of 86.81 and the lowermost RMSE of 4450.4, demonstrating superior predictive accuracy and making it the most effective model for this task. The best method for accurately predicting health insurance premiums was XGBoost Regression. The findings beneficial for policymakers, insurers, and healthcare providers as they can use this information to allocate resources more efficiently and enhance cost-effectiveness in the healthcare industry.展开更多
Objective Acute aortic dissection （AAD） is a catastrophic event with high early mortality rate, but to date, no data on the incidence of AAD in China's Mainland is available. This study aimed to estimate the inc...Objective Acute aortic dissection （AAD） is a catastrophic event with high early mortality rate, but to date, no data on the incidence of AAD in China's Mainland is available. This study aimed to estimate the incidence of AAD in China and characterize the clinical profile, management and in-hospital outcomes of this vascular event. Methods We used the China Health Insurance Research Data （the CHIRA Data） 2011 which comprises all inpatient hospital records （300,886） during the period of Jan. 1st 2011 to Dec. 31 2011 of 3,335,000 randomly sampled beneficiaries （1,718,500 men and 1,616,500 women） from 25 cities and counties in different economic-geographic regions of China's Mainland. Patients with acute aortic dissection were identified according to International Classification of Disease 10m Revision （ICD-10） of I71.0, The estimated incidence of AAD was calculated using the equation： estimated incidence = 2.0 × （40% × hospital admission rate） ＋ 60% × hospital admission rate. Results The hospital admission rate was 2.0/100,000 （65/3,325,000, 95% CI： 1.2-2.8）. The estimated annual incidence of AAD was 2.8/100,000 （95% CI： 1.9-3.6） and was higher in male than in female （3.7 vs. 1.5, P 〈 0.001）. The mean age was 58.9 ± 13.4 years. During the mean hospital stay of 23 ±6 days, the overall in-hospital mortality was 13.9% （9/65）. Conclusions Our study showed relatively lower but not negligible incidence and in-hospital mortality of AAD in the mainland of China. The mean age of patients with AAD in Chinese was younger than that reported by researches from west countries, while the male to female incidence ratio is similar to those reported by other studies.展开更多
Introduction: Several Nigerians are completely denied access to adequate health care because of cultural, temporal and financial factors with inequity. Objectives: To ascertain the household perceptions, willingness t...Introduction: Several Nigerians are completely denied access to adequate health care because of cultural, temporal and financial factors with inequity. Objectives: To ascertain the household perceptions, willingness to pay, benefit package preferences, and health systems readiness for Insurance Scheme. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 400 heads of households and 43 health workers in Enugu, Southern Nigeria. Results: Awareness of NHIS among the heads of household was 56.8%, while it was 86% among the health workers. Awareness of NHIS among heads of households was significantly associated to both educational level (X<sup>2</sup> = 16.083, P = 0.001), and occupation (X<sup>2</sup> = 5.694, P = 0.017). More males (61.6%) had correct perceptions of NHIS compared to females (58.6%), but not statistically significant (X<sup>2 </sup>= 0.336, P = 0.562). Majority of households respondents 89% are willing to pay for NHIS. Willingness to pay was significantly associated to occupation (X<sup>2</sup> = 5.169, df = 1, P = 0.023), but willingness to pay mandatory 5% premium was not significantly associated to occupation (X<sup>2</sup> = 0.884, P = 347). Only 11.6% of the health facilities are enlisted as providers in the scheme. Conclusion: Willingness to pay was high, but majority are not ready to pay 5% premium of their earnings. Awareness creation programmes should be improved for the public, and more health facilities enlisted for wider coverage.展开更多
Context: To facilitate financial access to care for the population, health insurance mechanisms have been established, in particular the National Health Insurance Institute, which covers civil servants and their depen...Context: To facilitate financial access to care for the population, health insurance mechanisms have been established, in particular the National Health Insurance Institute, which covers civil servants and their dependents. In addition, other voluntary and community mechanisms have been developed. After several years of implementation, the level of catastrophic health expenditures among insured individuals shows that there is still a considerable level of financial risk associated with health care. This study aims to assess the impact of health insurance in Togo on insured populations. Methodology: The data used in this study come from the harmonized survey on household living conditions carried out in 2018 by the National Institute of Statistics, Economic and Demographic Studies. The propensity score matching method was used according to the following steps: estimation of propensity scores, verification of the conditional independence hypothesis (balancing property) and estimation of the average treatment effect on treated. Stata V14.2 software was used. Findings: The average effect of health insurance on household financial protection is −0.012 for the nearest neighbor method, −0.013 for the matching radius method, −0.015 for the Kernel and −0.016 for the stratification method. Results showed that health insurance contributes to reducing catastrophic health expenditures, but their effect remains very limited. This could be explained by the level of care package covered and the cost covered. Conclusion: Health insurance contributes to the reduction of catastrophic health expenses for households. However, it is important to widen the range of care covered and the cost covered. In addition, measures to extend this coverage to a larger proportion of the population will make it possible to have a greater impact.展开更多
Currently, a consumer＇s monthly premium payment amount remitted to the National Health Insurance is based on the ＂monthly real wages,＂ while commercial health insurance uses ＂consumer age＂ as the basis for the pr...Currently, a consumer＇s monthly premium payment amount remitted to the National Health Insurance is based on the ＂monthly real wages,＂ while commercial health insurance uses ＂consumer age＂ as the basis for the premium amount charged. In reality, health, salary, and age have no visible connection. Therefore, the insurance premium scheme using salary and age as standards should be improved and adjusted upon. This study uses the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior as the research basis, and through the designed questionnaire, investigates the health data gathered from wearable devices and uses big data to process the constructed health assessment indicators. These indicators will be used to analyze whether consumers are willing to contribute to their health insurance using the dynamic payment mechanism. Subsequently, empirical research was performed using hypothesis architecture and structural equation.展开更多
The WHO World Health Assembly, and the most recent WHO World Health Report, have called for all health systems to move toward universal coverage. However, low-income countries have made little progress in this respect...The WHO World Health Assembly, and the most recent WHO World Health Report, have called for all health systems to move toward universal coverage. However, low-income countries have made little progress in this respect. We use existing evidence to describe the evolution of community-based health insurance in low-income countries through the three stages of basic model, enhanced model, and nationwide model. We have concluded that community-based health insurance development is a potential strategy to meet the urgent need for health financing in low-income countries. With careful planning and implementation, it is possible to adopt such evolutionary approach to achieve universal coverage by extending tax-based financing/social insurance characteristics to community-based health insurance schemes.展开更多
<b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Background</span></b><span style="font-family:;" "=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: Inappro...<b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Background</span></b><span style="font-family:;" "=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: Inappropriate use of medicines is a global concern with serious con</span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">sequences related to prescribing, dispensing, and use. WHO estimate</span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">d that 50% of medicines are not used correctly on their journey from the facility to home. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Objective</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: To assess medicines use using WHO drug core indicators rega</span><span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">rding prescribing, patient, and facilities. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Setting</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: Outpatients, Hea</span></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">lth centers in Wadmadani locality (Urban area) in Gezira State, Sudan. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Method</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: A cross-sectional, prospective, analytical study was conducted in 30 health centers and 60 patients from each center were selected using a simple random sampling technique. WHO indicators form was used to collect data containing different variables. T-test at a level of confidence of 95% was used to test differences between indicators. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was used for data analysis. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Results:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> The main prescribing indicators were 2.5 ± 0.6 for drugs per encounter, 44.1% ± 14.2%. Generic 54 ± 18.0 antibiotics, 12.0% ± 9.3% injectable, and 95.2% ± 11.5% of drugs were prescribed according to the NHIF-EML. The main patient’s indicators were, 2.9 ± 0.8 minutes for consultation time, 99.5 ± 36.8 seconds for dispensing time, and 72.5% ± 16.0% for medicines actually dispensed, 49.0% ± 18.0% for medicines adequately labeled, and 22.5% ± 7.3% of the patient’s knowledge about the correct dose. The Facility specific indicators were 66.7% for the availability of a copy of EML, while the percentage of key drugs in the stock was 75.3% ± 11.6%. No statistically significant differences were found between direct and indirect facilities except in generic prescribing. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Main Outcome Measure</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> Interventions to improve Generic and antibiotics prescribing indicators. <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> The patient-to-physician ratio should be revised to optimize consultation time. <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> The availability of key drugs should be improved to make sure effective treatment. <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> The pharmacy cadre should be oriented and trained to improve patients’ compliance. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Conclusion</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: The study concluded that there was irrational use of medicines when investigated by WHO drug core indicators. So, the study recommended interventions to improve the rationale prescribing, dispensing, and use of medicines.</span></span>展开更多
Introduction: The launch of health insurance in the Republic of the Congo took place against a backdrop of extremely high costs for dialysis, which was not one of the services financed within this framework. The aim o...Introduction: The launch of health insurance in the Republic of the Congo took place against a backdrop of extremely high costs for dialysis, which was not one of the services financed within this framework. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of including dialysis in the health insurance package in Congo. Methodology: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study with an evaluative aim, analyzing the impact of dialysis on the financing capacity of health insurance and health facilities to provide this type of care. Results: The results show that including dialysis in the universal health insurance package will require an additional financial effort of 6.20% of the current total financing capacity of the care basket. Most dialysis sessions are provided by the private health sector (87.5%), whose health facilities are unevenly distributed across the country, and concentrated in the country’s two major cities. This problem is the dual consequence of the very high cost of a dialysis session (average cost 140,234,375 FCFA or 229 US Dollars) and the number of patients under care, which will increase in the absence of effective and ongoing prevention efforts against chronic diseases in general and end-stage renal failure in particular. Conclusion: Dialysis is a high-impact public health intervention. The impact of its inclusion in the universal health insurance care package is difficult to bear financially. For dialysis to be covered by universal health insurance, additional funding and improved technical facilities are needed.展开更多
Commercial health insurance is the standard configuration of life insurance. It can make the insured get a compensation for the cost when they are ill or injured again, reducing their own pressure. However, the develo...Commercial health insurance is the standard configuration of life insurance. It can make the insured get a compensation for the cost when they are ill or injured again, reducing their own pressure. However, the development of commercial insurance in China is relatively late. At present, the state attaches great importance to the commercial insurance policy. For this situation, the state has issued a series of insurance policies. In this regard, the government of Hefei actively responded to the call of the state and attached great importance to the policy of commercial insurance, so that every insured can be assured. Although the continuous improvement of Hefeis commercial medical insurance system has provided a good guarantee for the economic development and the safety of peoples lives in Hefei, we must also be soberly aware that the current commercial medical insurance in Hefei is still in its infancy. Based on the actual development situation, this paper first analyzes the development trend and current situation of commercial health insurance in Hefei through a questionnaire survey, pointing out that the overall level of commercial health insurance in Hefei is low, and residents awareness of health insurance is insufficient. In this regard, the coverage of commercial insurance is not broad enough to provide a comprehensive supplement to medical insurance, which needs to be expanded. Secondly, the factors influencing commercial health insurance are comprehensively analyzed in terms of income, education level, disease factors and insurance company factors.展开更多
Objective To provide a reference for future budget of health insurance fund for the COVID-19 pandemic in other parts of China or other major public health events.Meanwhile,it also offers a reference for the government...Objective To provide a reference for future budget of health insurance fund for the COVID-19 pandemic in other parts of China or other major public health events.Meanwhile,it also offers a reference for the government to introduce and adjust the policy of health insurance funds after the pandemic.Methods Models of the income,expenditure and cumulative balance of health insurance fund in Hubei Province in 2020 were established and compared.The former was mainly established and tested using SPSS 26.0 and Excel,while the latter was obtained by inferential analysis.Results and Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic reduced the income and increased expenditure of the health insurance fund in Hubei Province in 2020,resulting in a deficit.The COVID-19 outbreak has caused a deficit in health insurance fund of Hubei Province in the short term,but in the long term,the outbreak will not have a major impact on the health insurance fund.展开更多
If your employer is sending you to China, chances are you will enjoy the status of an expatriate and all the benefits that come with it, including health insurance. However, if you＇re not that lucky, you＇ll have to ...If your employer is sending you to China, chances are you will enjoy the status of an expatriate and all the benefits that come with it, including health insurance. However, if you＇re not that lucky, you＇ll have to deal with this painfully expensive matter on your own, unless, of course, you decide not to purchase health insurance. But in a country where serious or even fatal accidents and health emergencies can and do happen, you would literally be taking your life into your own hands.展开更多
Male-biased sex imbalance is a common social concern in many developing countries.Using 2015 One Percent National Population Sample Census data and macro-level indicators from various sources in China,this study exami...Male-biased sex imbalance is a common social concern in many developing countries.Using 2015 One Percent National Population Sample Census data and macro-level indicators from various sources in China,this study examines the impact of social health insurance on sex selection at birth.The results show that social health insurance significantly affected the sex ratio at birth for the second child in families with a first-born girl,and there was salient urban–rural heterogeneity.Urban health insurance programs decreased the male–female ratio at the birth of the second child,suggesting that these programs mitigated the sex imbalance.In contrast,the expansion of rural health insurance caused an increase in the imbalanced sex ratio,indicating an exacerbation of the trend.The urban–rural difference in these impacts could be explained by a greater crowding-out effect in urban families and larger income and expenditure effects in rural families.展开更多
BACKGROUND Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)remains a significant public health concern in South Korea even though the incidence rates are declining.While medical travel for cancer treatment is common,its patterns and inf...BACKGROUND Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)remains a significant public health concern in South Korea even though the incidence rates are declining.While medical travel for cancer treatment is common,its patterns and influencing factors for patients with HCC are unknown.AIM To assess medical travel patterns and determinants and their policy implications among patients with newly diagnosed HCC in South Korea.METHODS This retrospective cohort study used the National Health Insurance Service database to identify patients with newly diagnosed HCC from 2013 to 2021.Medical travel was defined as receiving initial treatment outside one’s residential region.Patient characteristics and regional trends were analyzed,and factors influencing medical travel were identified using logistic regression analysis.RESULTS Among 64808 patients 52.4%received treatment in the capital.This proportion increased to 67.4%when including the surrounding metropolitan area.Medical travel was significantly more common among younger and wealthier patients.Patients with greater comorbidity burden or liver cirrhosis were less likely to travel.While geographic distance influenced travel patterns,high-volume academic centers in the capital attracted patients nationwide regardless of proximity.CONCLUSION This nationwide study highlighted the centralization of HCC care in the capital.This observation indicates that regional cancer hubs should be strengthened and promoted for equitable healthcare access.展开更多
BACKGROUND Private insurance coverage is associated with higher rates of living donor kidney transplantation(LDKT)but whether this is attributable to confounding is not known.AIM To study the association between incre...BACKGROUND Private insurance coverage is associated with higher rates of living donor kidney transplantation(LDKT)but whether this is attributable to confounding is not known.AIM To study the association between increased access to private health insurance and LDKT.METHODS Retrospective cohort study using United States transplant registry data.We identified incident candidates aged 22-29 years who were waitlisted for a kidneyonly transplant from 2005-2014,excluding prior transplant recipients and those with missing data.We calculated the hazard of LDKT after waitlisting for those with private insurance vs other insurance pre-Affordable Care Act(ACA)vs post-ACA,using death and delisting as competing events,for candidates affected by the policy change(age 22-25 years)vs those who were not(age 26-29 years).RESULTS A total of 13817 candidates were included,of whom 46%were age 22-25 years and 54%were age 26-29 years.Among candidates aged 22-25 years at listing,those listed post-ACA were more likely to have private insurance compared to those listed pre-ACA(42%vs 35%),but there was no difference in private insurance coverage between eras among candidates aged 26-29 years at listing.In adjusted competing risk regression,privately insured patients age 22-25 years were less likely to receive a LDKT post-ACA compared to pre-ACA[hazard ratio(HR)=0.88,95%CI:0.78-1.00],as were those aged 22-25 years old with other insurance types(HR=0.80,95%CI:0.69-0.92).These associations were not seen among candidates age 26-29 years.CONCLUSION Candidates age 22-25 years were likelier to have private insurance post-ACA,without an increased rate in LDKT.Demonstrations of associations between insurance and LDKT are likely attributable to residual confounding.展开更多
According to the latest Chinese Healthcare Reform .Plan, the medical insurance system is one ofthe four components of the healthcare sector. The Healthcare financing and payment in China are mainly based on medical in...According to the latest Chinese Healthcare Reform .Plan, the medical insurance system is one ofthe four components of the healthcare sector. The Healthcare financing and payment in China are mainly based on medical insurance. So it is important to learn the experiences of the developed countries. This paper examines the key issues of the German Healthcare system and reforms, with a particular emphasis on basic social medical insurance, which has the broadest coverage in Germany. It reviews the evolution of the background of the German social medical insurance system, describes how the system functions, and analyzes the existing and emerging problems with the system which push the Germany government to adapt a series of reforms.展开更多
Background Medical consortium is a specific vertical integration model of regional medical resources.To improve medical resources utilization and control the health insurance costs by fee-for-service plans （FFS）,cap...Background Medical consortium is a specific vertical integration model of regional medical resources.To improve medical resources utilization and control the health insurance costs by fee-for-service plans （FFS）,capitation fee and diagnosis-related groups （DRGs）,it is important to explore the attitudes of doctors towards the different health insurance payment in the medical consortium in Shanghai.Methods A questionnaire survey was carried out randomly on 50 doctors respectively in 3 different levels medical institutes.Results The statistical results showed that 90% of doctors in tertiary hospitals had the tendency towards FFS,whereas 78% in secondary hospitals towards DRGs and 84% in community health centers towards capitation fee.Conclusions There are some obvious differences on doctors＇ attitudes towards health insurance payment in 3 different levels hospitals.Thus,it is feasible that health insurance payment should be supposed to the doctors＇ attitudes using the bundled payments along with the third-party payment as a supervisor within consortium.展开更多
Background According to the regulations of the Chinese and Shanghai governments, migrant workers employed in Shanghai should all be entitled to Shanghai Migrant Worker Hospitalization Insurance （SMWHI） without premi...Background According to the regulations of the Chinese and Shanghai governments, migrant workers employed in Shanghai should all be entitled to Shanghai Migrant Worker Hospitalization Insurance （SMWHI） without premium and the vast majority should also have the New Rural Cooperative Medical System （NRCMS）. This study aimed to examine the status of the coverage and utilization of health insurance among migrant workers employed in Shanghai. Methods Quantitative and qualitative research methods were employed in the study. A survey of 1020 migrant workers employed in Shanghai was conducted in 2010 with a structured questionnaire. Focus group discussions were held with respondents who were unable to maintain health insurance coverage through NRCMS or SMWHI. In-depth interviews were held with village heads and employers of the migrant workers, migrant workers who were hospitalized within the last year, and various individuals employed by the insurance agencies. Results The study found that 72.9% and 36.5% of migrant workers were covered by NRCMS or SMWHI, respectively, while 16.7% of them had no health insurance. The coverage by NRCMS among migrant workers correlated significantly with education level and workplace, while the coverage by SMWHI correlated significantly with the length of employment in Shanghai and workplace. The qualitative results confirmed that migrant workers were the main group who were not covered by NRCMS, and the coverage by SMWHI was completely dependent upon the employers of the migrant worker. The results also showed that health insurance utilization among migrant workers was strongly limited by hospital location. Conclusions We observed that the status of health insurance among migrant workers was not accordant with theory, and that Chinese health insurance policy should be further reformed in order to realize full coverage and equal utilization of health insurance among migrant workers in China.展开更多
文摘In this article,we comment on the work put forth by Wu et al regarding the investigation of oesophageal cancer-specific mortality for a cohort of patients from Chongqing University Cancer Hospital.We specifically focused on the implications of public health plans such as Urban Employee Basic Medical Insurance(UEBMI)and Urban Resident Basic Medical Insurance as well as out-of-pocket ratios on patient treatment plans regarding whether they pursue surgical interventions or therapeutic treatments such as chemotherapy.While Wu et al put forth potential explanations for why patients with the UEBMI plan surprisingly had a 23.30%increased risk of oesophageal cancer-specific death,more analysis is needed to alleviate cancer burden within this group.Although it is likely that patients covered by Urban Resident Basic Medical Insurance and higher out-ofpocket ratios have stronger self-recovery awareness,more work must be done to improve outcomes for people with the UEBMI plan while simultaneously implementing international and domestic initiatives to better emphasize cancer prevention and early detection.Lastly,future research must explore the relationship between Serious Illness Medical Insurance as well as the New Rural Cooperative Medical System on the mortality rate of oesophageal cancer patients in rural China,where disease burden is significantly higher than urban areas.By unifying these public health insurance schemes,officials can significantly alleviate economic burden of treatment and better prognosis for patients with oesophageal cancer.
基金The National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.72071042)。
文摘China’s healthcare system faces increasing challenges,including surging medical costs,resource allocation imbalances favoring large hospitals,and ineffective referral mechanisms.The lack of a unified strategy integrating standardized coverage with personalized payment compounds these issues.To this end,this study proposes a risk-sharing reform strategy that combines equal coverage for the same disease(ECSD)with an individualized out-of-pocket(I-OOP)model.Specifically,the study employs a Markov model to capture patient transitions across health states and care levels.The findings show that ECSD and I-OOP enhance equity by standardizing disease coverage while tailoring costs to patient income and facility type.This approach alleviates demand on high-tier hospitals,promoting primary care utilization and enabling balanced resource distribution.The study’s findings provide a reference for policymakers and healthcare administrators by presenting a scalable framework that is aligned with China’s development goals with the aim of fostering an efficient,sustainable healthcare system that is adaptable to regional needs.
基金The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Dutch Research Council(NWO-WOTRO)(Grant No.W07.45.103.00)and the support of D.P.Hoijer Fonds,Erasmus Trustfonds,Erasmus University Rotterdam.
文摘Objectives This paper aims to investigate the effects of enrollment in the Ethiopian community-based health insurance(CBHI)scheme on household preventive care activities and the timing of treatment-seeking behavior for illness symptoms.There is growing concern about the financial sustainability of CBHI schemes in developing countries.However,few empirical studies have identified potential contributors,including ex-ante and ex-post moral hazards.Methods We implement a household fixed-effect panel data regression model,drawing on three rounds of household survey data collected face to face in districts where CBHI scheme is operational and in districts where it is not operational in Ethiopia.Results The findings show that enrolment in CBHI does not significantly influence household behaviour regarding preventive care activities such as water treatment before drinking and handwashing before meals.However,CBHI significantly increases delay in treatment-seeking behaviour for diseases symptoms.Particularly,on average,we estimate about 4-6 h delay for malaria symptoms,a little above 4 h for tetanus,and 10-11 h for tuberculosis among the insured households.Conclusions While there is evidence that CBHI improve the utilization of outpatient or primary care services,our study suggests that insured members may wait longer before visiting health facilities.This delay could be partly due to moral hazard problems,as insured households,particularly those from rural areas,may consider the opportunity costs associated with visiting health facilities for minor symptoms.Overall,it is essential to identify the primary causes of delays in seeking medical services and implement appropriate interventions to encourage insured individuals to seek early medical attention.
文摘One of the most significant annual expenses that a person has is their health insurance coverage. Health insurance accounts for one-third of GDP, and everyone needs medical treatment to varying degrees. Changes in medicine, pharmaceutical trends, and political factors are only a few of the many factors that cause annual fluctuations in healthcare costs. This paper describes how a system may analyse a person’s medical history to display their insurance plans and make predictions about their health insurance premiums. The performance of four ML models—XGBoost, Lasso, KNN, and Ridge—is evaluated using R2-score and RMSE. The analysis of medical health insurance cost prediction using Lasso regression, Ridge regression, and K-Nearest Neighbours (KNN), and XGBoost (XGB) highlights notable differences in performance. KNN has the lowest R2-score of 55.21 and an RMSE of 4431.1, indicating limited predictive ability. Ridge Regression improves on this by an R2-score of 78.38 but has a higher RMSE of 4652.06. Lasso Regression slightly edges out Ridge with an R2-score of 79.78, yet it suffers from an advanced RMSE of 5671.6. In contrast, XGBoost excels with the highest R2-score of 86.81 and the lowermost RMSE of 4450.4, demonstrating superior predictive accuracy and making it the most effective model for this task. The best method for accurately predicting health insurance premiums was XGBoost Regression. The findings beneficial for policymakers, insurers, and healthcare providers as they can use this information to allocate resources more efficiently and enhance cost-effectiveness in the healthcare industry.
文摘Objective Acute aortic dissection （AAD） is a catastrophic event with high early mortality rate, but to date, no data on the incidence of AAD in China's Mainland is available. This study aimed to estimate the incidence of AAD in China and characterize the clinical profile, management and in-hospital outcomes of this vascular event. Methods We used the China Health Insurance Research Data （the CHIRA Data） 2011 which comprises all inpatient hospital records （300,886） during the period of Jan. 1st 2011 to Dec. 31 2011 of 3,335,000 randomly sampled beneficiaries （1,718,500 men and 1,616,500 women） from 25 cities and counties in different economic-geographic regions of China's Mainland. Patients with acute aortic dissection were identified according to International Classification of Disease 10m Revision （ICD-10） of I71.0, The estimated incidence of AAD was calculated using the equation： estimated incidence = 2.0 × （40% × hospital admission rate） ＋ 60% × hospital admission rate. Results The hospital admission rate was 2.0/100,000 （65/3,325,000, 95% CI： 1.2-2.8）. The estimated annual incidence of AAD was 2.8/100,000 （95% CI： 1.9-3.6） and was higher in male than in female （3.7 vs. 1.5, P 〈 0.001）. The mean age was 58.9 ± 13.4 years. During the mean hospital stay of 23 ±6 days, the overall in-hospital mortality was 13.9% （9/65）. Conclusions Our study showed relatively lower but not negligible incidence and in-hospital mortality of AAD in the mainland of China. The mean age of patients with AAD in Chinese was younger than that reported by researches from west countries, while the male to female incidence ratio is similar to those reported by other studies.
文摘Introduction: Several Nigerians are completely denied access to adequate health care because of cultural, temporal and financial factors with inequity. Objectives: To ascertain the household perceptions, willingness to pay, benefit package preferences, and health systems readiness for Insurance Scheme. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 400 heads of households and 43 health workers in Enugu, Southern Nigeria. Results: Awareness of NHIS among the heads of household was 56.8%, while it was 86% among the health workers. Awareness of NHIS among heads of households was significantly associated to both educational level (X<sup>2</sup> = 16.083, P = 0.001), and occupation (X<sup>2</sup> = 5.694, P = 0.017). More males (61.6%) had correct perceptions of NHIS compared to females (58.6%), but not statistically significant (X<sup>2 </sup>= 0.336, P = 0.562). Majority of households respondents 89% are willing to pay for NHIS. Willingness to pay was significantly associated to occupation (X<sup>2</sup> = 5.169, df = 1, P = 0.023), but willingness to pay mandatory 5% premium was not significantly associated to occupation (X<sup>2</sup> = 0.884, P = 347). Only 11.6% of the health facilities are enlisted as providers in the scheme. Conclusion: Willingness to pay was high, but majority are not ready to pay 5% premium of their earnings. Awareness creation programmes should be improved for the public, and more health facilities enlisted for wider coverage.
文摘Context: To facilitate financial access to care for the population, health insurance mechanisms have been established, in particular the National Health Insurance Institute, which covers civil servants and their dependents. In addition, other voluntary and community mechanisms have been developed. After several years of implementation, the level of catastrophic health expenditures among insured individuals shows that there is still a considerable level of financial risk associated with health care. This study aims to assess the impact of health insurance in Togo on insured populations. Methodology: The data used in this study come from the harmonized survey on household living conditions carried out in 2018 by the National Institute of Statistics, Economic and Demographic Studies. The propensity score matching method was used according to the following steps: estimation of propensity scores, verification of the conditional independence hypothesis (balancing property) and estimation of the average treatment effect on treated. Stata V14.2 software was used. Findings: The average effect of health insurance on household financial protection is −0.012 for the nearest neighbor method, −0.013 for the matching radius method, −0.015 for the Kernel and −0.016 for the stratification method. Results showed that health insurance contributes to reducing catastrophic health expenditures, but their effect remains very limited. This could be explained by the level of care package covered and the cost covered. Conclusion: Health insurance contributes to the reduction of catastrophic health expenses for households. However, it is important to widen the range of care covered and the cost covered. In addition, measures to extend this coverage to a larger proportion of the population will make it possible to have a greater impact.
文摘Currently, a consumer＇s monthly premium payment amount remitted to the National Health Insurance is based on the ＂monthly real wages,＂ while commercial health insurance uses ＂consumer age＂ as the basis for the premium amount charged. In reality, health, salary, and age have no visible connection. Therefore, the insurance premium scheme using salary and age as standards should be improved and adjusted upon. This study uses the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior as the research basis, and through the designed questionnaire, investigates the health data gathered from wearable devices and uses big data to process the constructed health assessment indicators. These indicators will be used to analyze whether consumers are willing to contribute to their health insurance using the dynamic payment mechanism. Subsequently, empirical research was performed using hypothesis architecture and structural equation.
文摘The WHO World Health Assembly, and the most recent WHO World Health Report, have called for all health systems to move toward universal coverage. However, low-income countries have made little progress in this respect. We use existing evidence to describe the evolution of community-based health insurance in low-income countries through the three stages of basic model, enhanced model, and nationwide model. We have concluded that community-based health insurance development is a potential strategy to meet the urgent need for health financing in low-income countries. With careful planning and implementation, it is possible to adopt such evolutionary approach to achieve universal coverage by extending tax-based financing/social insurance characteristics to community-based health insurance schemes.
文摘<b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Background</span></b><span style="font-family:;" "=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: Inappropriate use of medicines is a global concern with serious con</span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">sequences related to prescribing, dispensing, and use. WHO estimate</span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">d that 50% of medicines are not used correctly on their journey from the facility to home. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Objective</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: To assess medicines use using WHO drug core indicators rega</span><span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">rding prescribing, patient, and facilities. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Setting</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: Outpatients, Hea</span></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">lth centers in Wadmadani locality (Urban area) in Gezira State, Sudan. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Method</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: A cross-sectional, prospective, analytical study was conducted in 30 health centers and 60 patients from each center were selected using a simple random sampling technique. WHO indicators form was used to collect data containing different variables. T-test at a level of confidence of 95% was used to test differences between indicators. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was used for data analysis. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Results:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> The main prescribing indicators were 2.5 ± 0.6 for drugs per encounter, 44.1% ± 14.2%. Generic 54 ± 18.0 antibiotics, 12.0% ± 9.3% injectable, and 95.2% ± 11.5% of drugs were prescribed according to the NHIF-EML. The main patient’s indicators were, 2.9 ± 0.8 minutes for consultation time, 99.5 ± 36.8 seconds for dispensing time, and 72.5% ± 16.0% for medicines actually dispensed, 49.0% ± 18.0% for medicines adequately labeled, and 22.5% ± 7.3% of the patient’s knowledge about the correct dose. The Facility specific indicators were 66.7% for the availability of a copy of EML, while the percentage of key drugs in the stock was 75.3% ± 11.6%. No statistically significant differences were found between direct and indirect facilities except in generic prescribing. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Main Outcome Measure</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> Interventions to improve Generic and antibiotics prescribing indicators. <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> The patient-to-physician ratio should be revised to optimize consultation time. <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> The availability of key drugs should be improved to make sure effective treatment. <span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">•</span></span> The pharmacy cadre should be oriented and trained to improve patients’ compliance. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Conclusion</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">: The study concluded that there was irrational use of medicines when investigated by WHO drug core indicators. So, the study recommended interventions to improve the rationale prescribing, dispensing, and use of medicines.</span></span>
文摘Introduction: The launch of health insurance in the Republic of the Congo took place against a backdrop of extremely high costs for dialysis, which was not one of the services financed within this framework. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of including dialysis in the health insurance package in Congo. Methodology: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study with an evaluative aim, analyzing the impact of dialysis on the financing capacity of health insurance and health facilities to provide this type of care. Results: The results show that including dialysis in the universal health insurance package will require an additional financial effort of 6.20% of the current total financing capacity of the care basket. Most dialysis sessions are provided by the private health sector (87.5%), whose health facilities are unevenly distributed across the country, and concentrated in the country’s two major cities. This problem is the dual consequence of the very high cost of a dialysis session (average cost 140,234,375 FCFA or 229 US Dollars) and the number of patients under care, which will increase in the absence of effective and ongoing prevention efforts against chronic diseases in general and end-stage renal failure in particular. Conclusion: Dialysis is a high-impact public health intervention. The impact of its inclusion in the universal health insurance care package is difficult to bear financially. For dialysis to be covered by universal health insurance, additional funding and improved technical facilities are needed.
文摘Commercial health insurance is the standard configuration of life insurance. It can make the insured get a compensation for the cost when they are ill or injured again, reducing their own pressure. However, the development of commercial insurance in China is relatively late. At present, the state attaches great importance to the commercial insurance policy. For this situation, the state has issued a series of insurance policies. In this regard, the government of Hefei actively responded to the call of the state and attached great importance to the policy of commercial insurance, so that every insured can be assured. Although the continuous improvement of Hefeis commercial medical insurance system has provided a good guarantee for the economic development and the safety of peoples lives in Hefei, we must also be soberly aware that the current commercial medical insurance in Hefei is still in its infancy. Based on the actual development situation, this paper first analyzes the development trend and current situation of commercial health insurance in Hefei through a questionnaire survey, pointing out that the overall level of commercial health insurance in Hefei is low, and residents awareness of health insurance is insufficient. In this regard, the coverage of commercial insurance is not broad enough to provide a comprehensive supplement to medical insurance, which needs to be expanded. Secondly, the factors influencing commercial health insurance are comprehensively analyzed in terms of income, education level, disease factors and insurance company factors.
文摘Objective To provide a reference for future budget of health insurance fund for the COVID-19 pandemic in other parts of China or other major public health events.Meanwhile,it also offers a reference for the government to introduce and adjust the policy of health insurance funds after the pandemic.Methods Models of the income,expenditure and cumulative balance of health insurance fund in Hubei Province in 2020 were established and compared.The former was mainly established and tested using SPSS 26.0 and Excel,while the latter was obtained by inferential analysis.Results and Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic reduced the income and increased expenditure of the health insurance fund in Hubei Province in 2020,resulting in a deficit.The COVID-19 outbreak has caused a deficit in health insurance fund of Hubei Province in the short term,but in the long term,the outbreak will not have a major impact on the health insurance fund.
文摘If your employer is sending you to China, chances are you will enjoy the status of an expatriate and all the benefits that come with it, including health insurance. However, if you＇re not that lucky, you＇ll have to deal with this painfully expensive matter on your own, unless, of course, you decide not to purchase health insurance. But in a country where serious or even fatal accidents and health emergencies can and do happen, you would literally be taking your life into your own hands.
基金support from the Research Seed Fund at the School of Economics,Peking University。
文摘Male-biased sex imbalance is a common social concern in many developing countries.Using 2015 One Percent National Population Sample Census data and macro-level indicators from various sources in China,this study examines the impact of social health insurance on sex selection at birth.The results show that social health insurance significantly affected the sex ratio at birth for the second child in families with a first-born girl,and there was salient urban–rural heterogeneity.Urban health insurance programs decreased the male–female ratio at the birth of the second child,suggesting that these programs mitigated the sex imbalance.In contrast,the expansion of rural health insurance caused an increase in the imbalanced sex ratio,indicating an exacerbation of the trend.The urban–rural difference in these impacts could be explained by a greater crowding-out effect in urban families and larger income and expenditure effects in rural families.
基金Supported by Dong-A University Research Fund,No.20230598.
文摘BACKGROUND Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)remains a significant public health concern in South Korea even though the incidence rates are declining.While medical travel for cancer treatment is common,its patterns and influencing factors for patients with HCC are unknown.AIM To assess medical travel patterns and determinants and their policy implications among patients with newly diagnosed HCC in South Korea.METHODS This retrospective cohort study used the National Health Insurance Service database to identify patients with newly diagnosed HCC from 2013 to 2021.Medical travel was defined as receiving initial treatment outside one’s residential region.Patient characteristics and regional trends were analyzed,and factors influencing medical travel were identified using logistic regression analysis.RESULTS Among 64808 patients 52.4%received treatment in the capital.This proportion increased to 67.4%when including the surrounding metropolitan area.Medical travel was significantly more common among younger and wealthier patients.Patients with greater comorbidity burden or liver cirrhosis were less likely to travel.While geographic distance influenced travel patterns,high-volume academic centers in the capital attracted patients nationwide regardless of proximity.CONCLUSION This nationwide study highlighted the centralization of HCC care in the capital.This observation indicates that regional cancer hubs should be strengthened and promoted for equitable healthcare access.
基金Supported by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases,United States,No.K23DK133729。
文摘BACKGROUND Private insurance coverage is associated with higher rates of living donor kidney transplantation(LDKT)but whether this is attributable to confounding is not known.AIM To study the association between increased access to private health insurance and LDKT.METHODS Retrospective cohort study using United States transplant registry data.We identified incident candidates aged 22-29 years who were waitlisted for a kidneyonly transplant from 2005-2014,excluding prior transplant recipients and those with missing data.We calculated the hazard of LDKT after waitlisting for those with private insurance vs other insurance pre-Affordable Care Act(ACA)vs post-ACA,using death and delisting as competing events,for candidates affected by the policy change(age 22-25 years)vs those who were not(age 26-29 years).RESULTS A total of 13817 candidates were included,of whom 46%were age 22-25 years and 54%were age 26-29 years.Among candidates aged 22-25 years at listing,those listed post-ACA were more likely to have private insurance compared to those listed pre-ACA(42%vs 35%),but there was no difference in private insurance coverage between eras among candidates aged 26-29 years at listing.In adjusted competing risk regression,privately insured patients age 22-25 years were less likely to receive a LDKT post-ACA compared to pre-ACA[hazard ratio(HR)=0.88,95%CI:0.78-1.00],as were those aged 22-25 years old with other insurance types(HR=0.80,95%CI:0.69-0.92).These associations were not seen among candidates age 26-29 years.CONCLUSION Candidates age 22-25 years were likelier to have private insurance post-ACA,without an increased rate in LDKT.Demonstrations of associations between insurance and LDKT are likely attributable to residual confounding.
文摘According to the latest Chinese Healthcare Reform .Plan, the medical insurance system is one ofthe four components of the healthcare sector. The Healthcare financing and payment in China are mainly based on medical insurance. So it is important to learn the experiences of the developed countries. This paper examines the key issues of the German Healthcare system and reforms, with a particular emphasis on basic social medical insurance, which has the broadest coverage in Germany. It reviews the evolution of the background of the German social medical insurance system, describes how the system functions, and analyzes the existing and emerging problems with the system which push the Germany government to adapt a series of reforms.
文摘Background Medical consortium is a specific vertical integration model of regional medical resources.To improve medical resources utilization and control the health insurance costs by fee-for-service plans （FFS）,capitation fee and diagnosis-related groups （DRGs）,it is important to explore the attitudes of doctors towards the different health insurance payment in the medical consortium in Shanghai.Methods A questionnaire survey was carried out randomly on 50 doctors respectively in 3 different levels medical institutes.Results The statistical results showed that 90% of doctors in tertiary hospitals had the tendency towards FFS,whereas 78% in secondary hospitals towards DRGs and 84% in community health centers towards capitation fee.Conclusions There are some obvious differences on doctors＇ attitudes towards health insurance payment in 3 different levels hospitals.Thus,it is feasible that health insurance payment should be supposed to the doctors＇ attitudes using the bundled payments along with the third-party payment as a supervisor within consortium.
文摘Background According to the regulations of the Chinese and Shanghai governments, migrant workers employed in Shanghai should all be entitled to Shanghai Migrant Worker Hospitalization Insurance （SMWHI） without premium and the vast majority should also have the New Rural Cooperative Medical System （NRCMS）. This study aimed to examine the status of the coverage and utilization of health insurance among migrant workers employed in Shanghai. Methods Quantitative and qualitative research methods were employed in the study. A survey of 1020 migrant workers employed in Shanghai was conducted in 2010 with a structured questionnaire. Focus group discussions were held with respondents who were unable to maintain health insurance coverage through NRCMS or SMWHI. In-depth interviews were held with village heads and employers of the migrant workers, migrant workers who were hospitalized within the last year, and various individuals employed by the insurance agencies. Results The study found that 72.9% and 36.5% of migrant workers were covered by NRCMS or SMWHI, respectively, while 16.7% of them had no health insurance. The coverage by NRCMS among migrant workers correlated significantly with education level and workplace, while the coverage by SMWHI correlated significantly with the length of employment in Shanghai and workplace. The qualitative results confirmed that migrant workers were the main group who were not covered by NRCMS, and the coverage by SMWHI was completely dependent upon the employers of the migrant worker. The results also showed that health insurance utilization among migrant workers was strongly limited by hospital location. Conclusions We observed that the status of health insurance among migrant workers was not accordant with theory, and that Chinese health insurance policy should be further reformed in order to realize full coverage and equal utilization of health insurance among migrant workers in China.
