A study to assess the economic burden faced by rural households due to Out-of-pocket expenditure on healthcare in Uttar Kannada and Udupi districts of Karnataka.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Various studies reveal that in India more than 80 percent of health care financing is mainly in the form of out-of-pocket (OOP). As a felt need, this study was conducted with the objectives to assess the economic burden faced by rural households due to out-of-pocket payments.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted for a period of 2 years among 550 households in the rural areas of Uttar Kannada and Udupi districts. Households were selected using the multistage sampling technique and interviewed using a pre-designed and pre-tested proforma. Descriptive statistics were applied, and the data were analyzed using proportions and percentages. A Chi-square test was used to find the association between different attributes. Statistical significance was set at a 0.05% level of significance ( < 0.05).

FINDINGS

It was observed that 5 (1.99%) households spent Rs 50000 to 1 lakh, and 26 (10.36%) spent more than 1 lakh among insured households compared to 30 (17.96%) and 14 (8.38%) households, respectively among non-insured households. This difference was found to be statistically significant with value <0.0001. Avoidance of hospital admission and medications were found to be more among noninsured households compared to insured households, which was statistically significant with value <0.001. Almost half of those who did not have health insurance borrowed money, took a loan on property and NGOs, and sold valuables compared to those who had health insurance, and this difference was statistically significant with value <0.001.

CONCLUSION

During the study, it was seen that households that did not have health insurance had higher expenditure on health services, avoided hospitalization and medication, and sold valuables as a source of out-of-pocket expenditure when compared to those who had health insurance, and the difference was found to be statistically significant.