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International Journal for Equity in Health
Published in: International Journal for Equity in Health 1/2019

Open Access 01-12-2019 | Research

Institutional differences and geographical disparity: the impact of medical insurance on the equity of health services utilization by the floating elderly population - evidence from China

Authors: Junqiang Han, Yingying Meng

Published in: International Journal for Equity in Health | Issue 1/2019

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Abstract

Background

The Chinese government has now achieved universal coverage of medical insurance through two systems: the Basic Medical Insurance System for Urban Employees (BMISUE) and the Basic Medical Insurance System for Urban and Rural Residents (BMISURR). This paper aims to identify the impact of China’s current medical insurance system on equity in the use of health services by the floating elderly population from two aspects: institutional differences and geographical disparity.

Methods

The data used in the study are from the China Migrants Dynamic Survey (CMDS) conducted by the National Health and Wellness Council of China. This study uses the Logit model to estimate the impact of the medical insurance system on the utilization of health services and the Propensity Score Matching (PSM) method to further test the robustness of the results.

Results

The study found that the type of medical insurance does not affect health services utilization by the floating elderly population in China. However, for those participating in the same medical insurance, participation in different regions will significantly affect the use of health service resources. For the BMISURR, when the place of the insurance is the same as the place of residence, the proportion of the floating elderly population that will see a doctor when they are sick will increase by 4.80%. For the BMISUE, when the place of the insurance is the same as the place of residence, the proportion of the floating elderly population that will see a doctor when they are sick will increase by 10.30%.

Conclusions

The difference between the place of insurance and the place of residence results in the unbalanced utilization of health services by the floating elderly population participating in the same medical insurance system.
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Metadata
Title
Institutional differences and geographical disparity: the impact of medical insurance on the equity of health services utilization by the floating elderly population - evidence from China
Authors
Junqiang Han
Yingying Meng
Publication date
01-12-2019
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
International Journal for Equity in Health / Issue 1/2019
Electronic ISSN: 1475-9276
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-019-0998-y

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