BACKGROUND To quantify extent of catastrophic household health expenditures, determine factors influencing it and estimate Fairness in Financial Contribution (FFC) index in Georgia to establish the baseline for expected reforms and contribute to the design and fine-tuning of the major reforms in health care financing initiated by the government mid-2007. METHODS The research is based on the n...

This paper analyzes the main advances in health coverage and health services demand in Colombia using the 1997 and 2003 living standards surveys. The study showed an increase in health coverage associated with expansion of the subsidized care system, although a large proportion of the population is still not entitled to health care. The type of entitlement also directly affects the demand for s...

PROBLEM High out-of-pocket payments and user fees with unfunded exemptions limit access to health services for the poor. Health equity funds (HEF) emerged in Cambodia as a strategic purchasing mechanism used to fund exemptions and reduce the burden of health-care costs on people on very low incomes. Their impact on access to health services must be carefully examined. APPROACH Evidence from t...

BACKGROUND Insurance benefits can have a large effect on whether one is able to access health care services. Mental health and substance abuse (MHSA) insurance coverage has typically been less generous than that of general health services. AIMS OF THE STUDY This paper examines trends in the generosity of private insurance benefits for mental health (MH) services in the United States from 1987...

INTRODUCTION In many developing countries, including Vietnam, out-of-pocket payment is the principal source of health financing. The economic growth is widening the gap between rich and poor people in many aspects, including health care utilization. While inequities in health between high- and low-income groups have been well investigated, this study aims to investigate how the health care util...

BACKGROUND Poverty is an extreme consequence of out of pocket payments in countries with health systems that do not provide financial risk protection through mandatory health insurance coverage for people in both the formal and informal sectors. The study assessed the determinants of impoverishment due to out of pocket payments in Nigeria. METHODS Secondary data from the Harmonized Nigeria Li...

Myanmar has a high proportion of out-of-pocket (OOP) health care expenditures with limited cost-sharing mechanisms. In Myanmar, there were limited data on the frequency of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) due to OOP payments, as well as on the factors associated with CHE. This study aimed to investigate health care expenditure, the frequency of CHE, and the factors influencing CHE among ho...

OBJECTIVES To estimate the annual cost to patients, the health service and society of infectious intestinal disease (IID) from Campylobacter, norovirus and rotavirus. DESIGN Secondary data analysis. SETTING The United Kingdom population, 2008-9. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Cases and frequency of health services usage due to these three pathogens; associated healthcare costs; direct, out-of-pock...