Voluntary private health insurance demand by Portuguese seniors before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Int J Health Plann Manage
; 2022 Nov 29.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-2283673
ABSTRACT
AIMS:
The Portuguese health system is mainly described as a National Health Service (NHS), but it also has some Bismarckian features. On top of these two layers of health insurance coverage, there is a market for voluntary private health insurance (VPHI). Usually, seniors are not eligible for this type of health insurance and this may serve as a complement or supplement to the NHS. The purpose of this work is to identify the main factors associated with holding a VPHI policy among seniors before the COVID-19 pandemic. MATERIAL ANDMETHODS:
We use data collected by the National Health Survey of 2019/20 and estimate a multivariate logistic regression.RESULTS:
The main findings show that VPHI may be bought by seniors as a facilitator to access health care, either specialised or dental care. While oral health is not covered by the NHS, specialist care is only available after referral by a gatekeeper and requires a long waiting time to be scheduled. Results show that people who had an appointment with a dentist or a specialist in the last 12 months are more likely to have a VPHI policy. Additionally, it was found that people benefiting from occupation-based insurance schemes are less likely to buy private health insurance.CONCLUSION:
The current Portuguese health system organization based on different layers of health protection raises some issues concerning equity to health care access by seniors.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Type of study:
Observational study
Language:
English
Journal subject:
Health Services Research
/
Health Services
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Hpm.3601
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