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Insurance covered and non-covered complementary and alternative medicine utilisation among adults in Taiwan

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  • Shih, Shu-Fang
  • Lew-Ting, Chih-Yin
  • Chang, Hsing-Yi
  • Kuo, Ken N.

Abstract

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has been characterized by prevalence, cost, and patterns of use. Factors determining its utilization have also been analyzed, either generally or for specific diseases, but few studies have considered the determinants of its frequency of use. Taiwan's pluralistic health care system and comprehensive insurance program covering Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) provide an interesting case to explore what forms of CAM people use, why and how often they use them. By using Taiwan's 2001 National Health Interview Survey and linking it with National Health Insurance (NHI) claims data, this study aims to investigate the socio-demographic, economic, behavioral and health determinants of use and frequency of use for both non-covered and covered CAM in Taiwan. The former consists of services practiced by non-regulated or non-NHI contracted practitioners and the latter includes those TCM covered by NHI. Our study showed that the determinants of using non-covered and covered CAM differ with respect to socio-demographic and behavioral factors, and health needs. Our evidence suggests that future CAM research must delineate between use and frequency of use to better understand the underlying factors contributing to initiation and continuity of CAM use.

Suggested Citation

  • Shih, Shu-Fang & Lew-Ting, Chih-Yin & Chang, Hsing-Yi & Kuo, Ken N., 2008. "Insurance covered and non-covered complementary and alternative medicine utilisation among adults in Taiwan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 67(7), pages 1183-1189, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:67:y:2008:i:7:p:1183-1189
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mullahy, John, 1986. "Specification and testing of some modified count data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 33(3), pages 341-365, December.
    2. Chi, Chunhuei, 1994. "Integrating traditional medicine into modern health care systems: Examining the role of Chinese medicine in Taiwan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 307-321, August.
    3. Lew-Ting, Chih-Yin, 2005. "Antibiomedicine belief and integrative health seeking in Taiwan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 60(9), pages 2111-2116, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Steven Yen & Hung-Hao Chang & Tsui-Fang Lin, 2013. "Out-of-pocket expenditures on traditional and Western medicine in Taiwan," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 58(4), pages 583-592, August.
    2. Liu, Li-Fan & Tian, Wei-Hua & Yao, Hui-Ping, 2012. "Utilization of health care services by elderly people with National Health Insurance in Taiwan: The heterogeneous health profile approach," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(2), pages 246-255.

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