Catastrophic health expenditure for poor and low-income rural residents under New Rural Co-operative Medical Scheme / 中国卫生政策研究

ABSTRACT

Objective:To evaluate the catastrophic health expenditure for poor and lower-income rural residents and the ability of New Rural Cooperative Medical Scheme( NRCMS) to alleviate poverty. Methods:We selected Zhe-jiang, Hubei, and Chongqing provinces as sample areas and obtained 1661 questionnaires through a field survey. We calculated the out-of-pocket expenditure per year, incidence, average gap, relative gap, and concentration index of catastrophic health expenditure for participating households. Results:Both before and after compensation, incidence, average gap, and relative gap of catastrophic health payment for poverty group were the highest, followed by low-in-come group. After compensation, the concentration index decreased. This means that catastrophic health expenditure tends to be focused more on families with financial difficulties. Conclusion:To protect poor and low-income rural res-idents from catastrophic health expenditure, we should promote critical illness insurance, improve the medical assis-tance system, implement payment reform, and improve the NRCMS.