Measuring catastrophe in paying for healthcare: A comparative methodological approach by using National Sample Survey, India

Healthcare expenditure significantly varies among various segments of the population. The appropriate measures of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) will help to unravel the real burden of spending among households. Present study provides a link between the theoretical insights from Grossman's model and various methodological approaches for the estimation of CHE by using data from the three rounds of nationally representative Consumer Expenditure Surveys, India. Statistical analysis has been carried out by using multivariate logistic regression to identify the major determinants of CHE. Findings indicate that the occurrence of CHE has increased during 1993–2012. Rural residents and households with varying age composition such as with higher numbers of children and elderly were at higher risk. Economic status is significantly associated with CHE and increased demand for healthcare. The measurements differ as per the methodological approaches of CHE and definition of household's capacity to pay. Approach‐based variations in the results can be of key importance in determining trends and magnitude in CHE. Despite these variations in measurements, study finds a limited incidence of CHE among the disadvantaged segment of the population though a greater share was devoted to health expenditure in recent years. Better risk pooling mechanism is required to address the healthcare needs of the disadvantaged segment such as elderly, children, poor and rural population in India.