Factors affecting health insurance utilization among insured population: evidence from health insurance program of Bhaktapur district of Nepal

BMC Health Services Research

Research

Pratik Khanal¹  Reshu Agrawal Sagtani²  Sushmita Ghimire²  Sailaja Ghimire²  Sudarshan Paudel² 

[1] Nepal Public Health Association, Lalitpur, Nepal;School of Public Health, Patan Academy of Health Sciences, Lagankhel, Lalitpur, Nepal;

关键词: Health insurance;    Insured;    Nepal;    Service utilization;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12913-023-09145-9

 received in 2022-08-14, accepted in 2023-02-03,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThe Government of Nepal introduced the family-based health insurance program in 2016 to increase financial protection and improve access to health care services. The study aimed to assess factors associated with the utilization of health insurance among the insured population in an urban district of Nepal.MethodsA cross-sectional survey using face-to-face interviews was conducted in 224 households in the Bhaktapur district of Nepal. Household heads were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Logistic regression with weighted analysis was done to identify predictors of service utilization among the insured residents.ResultsThe prevalence of health insurance service utilization at the household level in the Bhaktapur district was 77.2% (n = 173/224). The number of elder members in the family (AOR 2.7, 95% CI 1.09–7.07), having a family member with chronic illness (AOR 5.10, 95% CI 1.48–17.56), willingness to continue health insurance (AOR 2.18, 95% CI 1.47–3.25) and membership duration (AOR 1.14, 95% CI 1.05–1.24) were significantly associated with the utilization of the health insurance at the household level.ConclusionThe study identified a particular group of the population who were more likely to utilize health insurance services, including the chronically ill and elderly. Health insurance program in Nepal would benefit from strategies to increase population coverage in health insurance, improve the quality of health services, and retain members in the program.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2023