Out of pocket expenditure on surgical and nonsurgical conditions in Odisha

Achieving health equity through healthcare technology: Perspective from India

India aims to provide universal health coverage to all individuals and communities thus ensuring accessibility, promotive, curative, preventive, rehabilitative, and palliative health services to all. Healthcare technologies play a critical role in ensuring eliminating healthcare disparities and encouraging quality healthcare at all levels. Technology solutions such as indigenous medical devices and diagnostic products, telemedicine, artificial intelligence, and drone technology can best integrate rural needs, improve health outcomes, patient safety, and healthcare quality and experience for patients' values and strengths and can therefore be important contributors to advancing rural health equity. These technologies can transform India's healthcare system by providing quality care and mitigating the risk of catastrophic financial hardship.

Impact of India's publicly financed health insurance scheme on public sector district hospitals: a health financing perspective

Background

Districts hospitals in India play a pivotal role in delivering health care services in the public sector and are empanelled under India's national health insurance scheme i.e. Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (PMJAY). In this paper, we evaluate the extent to which the PMJAY impacts the district hospitals from a financing perspective.

Methods

We used cost data from India's nationally representative costing study-'Costing of Health Services in India' (CHSI) to determine the incremental cost of treating PMJAY patients, after adjusting for resources that are paid through supply-side government financing route. Second, we used data on number and claim value paid to public district and sub-district hospitals during 2019, to determine the additional revenue generated through PMJAY. The annual net financial gain per district hospital was estimated as the difference between payments under PMJAY, and the incremental cost of delivering the services.

Findings

At current levels of utilisation, the district hospitals in India gain a net annual financial benefit of $ 26.1 (₹ 1839.3) million, which can potentially increase up to $ 41.8 (₹ 2942.9) million with an increase in the share of patient volume. For an average district hospital, we estimate net annual financial gain of $ 169,607 (₹ 11.9 million), increasing up to $ 271,372 (₹ 19.1 million) per hospital with increased utilisation.

Interpretation

Demand-side financing mechanisms can be used to strengthen the public sector. Increasing utilisation of district hospitals, by either gatekeeping or improving availability of services will enhance financial gains for district hospitals and strengthen public sector.

Funding

Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India.

Out-of-Pocket Costs and Importance of Nonmedical and Indirect Costs of Inpatients

OBJECTIVES

Out-of-pocket (OOP) costs are a major part of the expenditures for healthcare services. In most cases, patient financial protection plans cover only direct medical costs and not other expenses by patients.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted on 800 patients referring medical centers of Kerman to analyse all aspects of OOP, especially after the Health Transformation Plan in Iran. Using the probability proportional to the size of the medical center, samples from each ward in each medical center were determined in accordance with the previous year's patient number. Randomly selected medical records of the last 2 weeks of patients discharged were collected, information was extracted, and telephone interviews were conducted.

RESULTS

The mean total OOP costs of a one-time hospitalization in all medical centers in Kerman was equal to 7 561 977 Iranian rials. Assuming a 5% threshold, 37% of patients in public centers were faced with catastrophic health expenditures for a one-time hospitalization. Based on the results of the regression model, reduction of length of stay, elimination of the need for the presence of next of kin, and provision of healthcare services out of hospitals can greatly reduce OOP expenditures.

CONCLUSION

Although direct medical costs are of special importance, and it is very necessary to protect patients against such costs, patients usually incur a variety of costs when receiving inpatient services. Inattention to direct nonmedical costs and indirect costs due to patients' and their next of kin's absenteeism may cause households to face catastrophic expenditures.

Predictors of 'Out-of-Pocket Expenditure' on Routine Immunization of Under-Five Children: A Regression Analysis

Introduction: ‘Out-of-pocket expenditure’ (OOPE) is the expenditures at the point of receiving health care directly by households which affects the economic stability of the household. When the expenditure on immunization of under-five children results in OOPE, it affects the motivation of parents for vaccination inversely.

Aim: This study was planned to evaluate the out-of-pocket expenditure and to assess predictors of OOPE on routine immunization practices.

Settings and design: This was a cross-sectional community-based study conducted from May to August 2019 at one of the immunization sites at primary health centers under a tertiary care institute of southern Rajasthan.

Material and methods: At the selected health facility, randomly 75% of beneficiaries of routine immunization were enrolled for the study. Data were collected using a pre-designed, pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire about direct and indirect expenses during the process of immunization incurred by the parents of the vaccinee by interview technique.

Results: In the study, 72.36% were infants, and 56.10% had first birth order. Mother accompanied nearly half of the vaccinee (49.6%) to the vaccination centre and the most used mode of transportation was the personal vehicle (63%). Mean loss of wages among parents/caretakers was 0.58 (±0.66) USD (median = 0.69; interquartile range (IQR) = 0.69; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.42-0.73) while average cost of transportation worn was 0.16 (±0.20) USD (median = 0.07; IQR = 0.21; 95% CI = 0.12-0.19) and mean duration of travelling to reach health facility was 11.87 (±7.53) minutes (median = 10; IQR = 10; 95% CI = 10.53-13.20). Vaccination at the centre was free of cost (zero USD) and no cost was incurred for drugs or registration. Average OPPE was 0.74 (±0.97) USD (median = 0.35; IQR = 0.62; 95% CI = 0.56-0.91) and regression analysis predicted significant contributors as age of vaccinee (p = 0.00; OR = 0.11; 95% CI = 0.04-0.34), religion (p = 0.04; OR = 0.34; 95% CI = 0.12-0.97) area of residence (p = 0.00; OR = 6.77; 95% CI = 2.37-19.32), birth order of vaccinee (p = 0.02; OR = 0.3; 95% CI = 0.11-0.85), longer waiting time (p = 0.03; OR = 0.16; 95% CI = 0.03-0.85), travelling time (p = 0.00; OR = 3.47; 95% CI = 1.49-8.09) and long distances (p = 0.00; OR = 10.40; 95% CI = 2.56-42.03) travelled to reach vaccination centre.

Conclusion: The hidden cost of vaccination in the form of loss of wages and time, travel cost due to stretched distance traveled by family members to accompany vaccinee to immunization facility is experienced as OOPE by the families and could be one of the impediments in vaccination coverage. Amendments in the existing policies are required to reduce this invisible cost of vaccination.

Out-of-pocket expenditure and drug adherence of patients with diabetes in Odisha

Introduction:

The burden of diabetes mellitus (DM) is increasing in India and across states. Given the chronic and progressive nature of the disease, it implicates huge financial burden on patients. Given this, the objectives of this study are to estimate the out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure on diabetes care and assess the magnitude of medication adherence among patients in a public hospital.

Materials and Methods:

A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 206 patients with age ≥25 years visiting the outpatient department of a tertiary care hospital in Odisha. Cost data were collected from April to June 2016 using a structured questionnaire, and drug adherence was assessed using the Morisky Medication Adherence Scale.

Results:

The average total expenditure per patient per month was INR 1265 (95% confidence interval 1178–1351), of which medical expenditure was INR 993 (95 confidence interval 912–1075) and that of nonmedical expenditure was INR 271 (95 confidence interval 251–292). Expenditure on medicine constituted around 65% of total medical expenditure. The other drivers of medical expenditure were diagnostics services constituting 13.2% and transportation (11.8%). Overall, only 15% of the patients reported high adherence to medication.

Discussion:

This study generated evidence on OOP expenditure on diabetics in Odisha which are comparable to many Indian studies. One of the critical findings of this study was that a majority of patients visiting public hospitals had to spend OOP on medicine and diagnostic services. These findings could be used to design appropriate financing strategies to protect the interest of the poor who largely use public health facility in Odisha.