Heterogeneous effects of national health insurance scheme on healthcare utilisation: evidence from Ghana

IF 1.9 Q2 ECONOMICS

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SOCIAL ECONOMICS Pub Date : 2023-12-11 DOI:10.1108/ijse-05-2023-0330

Samuel Sekyi, Senia Nhamo, Edinah Mudimu

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to evaluate Ghana's National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) on healthcare utilisation by exploring its heterogeneous effects based on residential status and wealth.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used the Ghana Socioeconomic Panel Survey (GSPS) datasets. An instrumental variable strategy, specifically the two-stage residual inclusion (2SRI), was employed to control endogenous NHIS membership.

Findings

Generally, the results show that NHIS improves healthcare utilisation (i.e. visits to a health facility and formal care). Concerning the heterogeneous effects of health insurance on healthcare utilisation, the results revealed that NHIS members are more likely to seek care, irrespective of their residence status. The results further indicate that the probability of visiting a health facility and utilising formal care increases for the poorest NHIS participants. Based on these, the authors conclude that NHIS provides equitable healthcare access and utilisation for its vulnerable populations, who are beneficiaries.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this paper is the first to explore the heterogeneous effects of NHIS on healthcare utilisation across residential and income subpopulations. Splitting the dataset by residential status to examine healthcare utilisation inequality is worthwhile. In addition, analysing utilisation in terms of health care type would show whether Ghana's NHIS may be viewed as welfare-enhancing through increased formal health care utilisation.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-05-2023-0330

查看原文本刊更多论文

国家医疗保险计划对医疗利用率的异质性影响：来自加纳的证据

目的本文旨在通过探讨加纳国家医疗保险计划（NHIS）对医疗保健利用率的异质性影响，从而评估该计划对医疗保健利用率的影响。研究使用了加纳社会经济面板调查（GSPS）数据集。研究结果总体而言，NHIS 提高了医疗保健的利用率（即到医疗机构就诊和接受正规治疗）。关于医疗保险对医疗利用率的异质性影响，结果显示，无论其居住状况如何，NHIS 会员都更有可能寻求医疗服务。结果进一步表明，最贫困的 NHIS 参与者前往医疗机构就诊和使用正规医疗服务的概率会增加。据作者所知，本文首次探讨了 NHIS 对不同居住和收入亚群的医疗保健利用率的异质性影响。按居住状况拆分数据集以研究医疗保健利用率的不平等是值得的。此外，从医疗保健类型的角度分析利用率将显示加纳的 NHIS 是否可以通过增加正规医疗保健的利用率来提高福利。同行评议本文的同行评议历史见：https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-05-2023-0330。

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来源期刊

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SOCIAL ECONOMICS ECONOMICS-

CiteScore

3.20

自引率

5.30%

发文量

期刊介绍： The International Journal of Social Economics publishes original and peer-reviewed theoretical and empirical research in the field of social economics. Its focus is on the examination and analysis of the interaction between economic activity, individuals and communities. Social economics focuses on the relationship between social action and economies, and examines how social and ethical norms influence the behaviour of economic agents. It is inescapably normative and focuses on needs, rather than wants or preferences, and considers the wellbeing of individuals in communities: it accepts the possibility of a common good rather than conceiving of communities as merely aggregates of individual preferences and the problems of economics as coordinating those preferences. Therefore, contributions are invited which analyse and discuss well-being, welfare, the nature of the good society, governance and social policy, social and economic justice, social and individual economic motivation, and the associated normative and ethical implications of these as they express themselves in, for example, issues concerning the environment, labour and work, education, the role of families and women, inequality and poverty, health and human development.