IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v20y2023i12p6097-d1168093.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Healthcare Services Utilisation and Financial Burden among Vietnamese Older People and Their Households

Author

Listed:
  • Long Thanh Giang

    (Faculty of Economics, National Economics University (NEU), Hanoi 11616, Vietnam)

  • Tham Hong Thi Pham

    (Faculty of Mathematical Economics, National Economics University (NEU), Hanoi 11616, Vietnam)

  • Phong Manh Phi

    (Faculty of Political Studies, Hanoi University of Mining and Geology (HUMG), Hanoi 10000, Vietnam)

  • Nam Truong Nguyen

    (Institute of Social and Medical Studies (ISMS), Hanoi 10000, Vietnam)

Abstract

Background: This research examined differences in the utilisation of healthcare services and financial burden between and within insured and uninsured older persons and their households under the social health insurance scheme in Vietnam. Methods: We used nationally representative data from the Vietnam Household Living Standard Survey (VHLSS) conducted in 2014. We applied the World Health Organization (WHO)’s financial indicators in healthcare to provide cross-tabulations and comparisons for insured and uninsured older persons along with their individual and household characteristics (such as age groups, gender, ethnicity, per-capita household expenditure quintiles, and place of residence). Results: We found that social health insurance was beneficial to the insured in comparison with the uninsured in terms of utilization of healthcare services and financial burden. However, between and within these two groups, more vulnerable groups (i.e., ethnic minorities and rural persons) had lower utilization rates and higher rates of catastrophic spending than the better groups (i.e., Kinh and urban persons). Conclusion: Given the rapidly ageing population under low middle-income status and the “double burden of diseases”, this paper suggested that Vietnam reform the healthcare system and social health insurance so as to provide more equitable utilisation and financial protection to all older persons, including improving the quality of healthcare at the grassroots level and reducing the burden on the provincial/central health level; improving human resources for the grassroots healthcare facilities; encroaching public–private partnerships (PPPs) in the healthcare service provision; and developing a nationwide family doctor network.

Suggested Citation

  • Long Thanh Giang & Tham Hong Thi Pham & Phong Manh Phi & Nam Truong Nguyen, 2023. "Healthcare Services Utilisation and Financial Burden among Vietnamese Older People and Their Households," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(12), pages 1-13, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:12:p:6097-:d:1168093
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/12/6097/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/12/6097/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. repec:wly:soecon:v:82:2:y:2015:p:361-384 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Yu Wang & Yan Jiang & Yang Li & Xiaojun Wang & Chi Ma & Shuangge Ma, 2013. "Health Insurance Utilization and Its Impact: Observations from the Middle-Aged and Elderly in China," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(12), pages 1-9, December.
    3. Ajay Tandon & Aparnaa Somanathan & Huong Lan Dao & Kari L. Hurt & Hernan L. Fuenzalida-Puelma, 2014. "Moving toward Universal Coverage of Social Health Insurance in Vietnam : Assessment and Options," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 18885, August.
    4. Cuong Viet Nguyen, 2012. "The Impact Of Voluntary Health Insurance On Health Care Utilization And Out‐Of‐Pocket Payments: New Evidence For Vietnam," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 21(8), pages 946-966, August.
    5. Juergen Jung & Jialu Liu Streeter, 2015. "Does health insurance decrease health expenditure risk in developing countries? The case of China," Southern Economic Journal, Southern Economic Association, vol. 82(2), pages 361-384, October.
    6. Ardeshir Sepehri & Sisira Sarma & Wayne Simpson, 2006. "Does non‐profit health insurance reduce financial burden? Evidence from the Vietnam living standards survey panel," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 15(6), pages 603-616, June.
    7. Likwang Chen & Winnie Yip & Ming‐Cheng Chang & Hui‐Sheng Lin & Shyh‐Dye Lee & Ya‐Ling Chiu & Yu‐Hsuan Lin, 2007. "The effects of Taiwan's National Health Insurance on access and health status of the elderly," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 16(3), pages 223-242, March.
    8. Budi Aji & Manuela De Allegri & Aurelia Souares & Rainer Sauerborn, 2013. "The Impact of Health Insurance Programs on Out-of-Pocket Expenditures in Indonesia: An Increase or a Decrease?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-19, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lan Thi Thu Phan & Yusuke Jinnai, 2018. "Does health insurance matter in the hospital? New evidence from patient-level medical records in Vietnam," Working Papers EMS_2018_01, Research Institute, International University of Japan.
    2. Dang, Thang, 2017. "The Multiple Effects of Child Health Insurance in Vietnam," MPRA Paper 78614, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Ha Trong Nguyen & Luke B Connelly, 2017. "Cost-sharing in health insurance and its impact in a developing country: evidence from a quasi-natural experiment," Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre Working Paper series WP1702, Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School.
    4. Vo, Thang T. & Van, Pham Hoang, 2019. "Can health insurance reduce household vulnerability? Evidence from Viet Nam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 1-1.
    5. Nguyen Viet, Cuong, 2014. "Impact Evaluation of Development Programmes and Policies: Experiences from Viet Nam," MPRA Paper 60919, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Lingguo Cheng & Hong Liu & Ye Zhang & Ke Shen & Yi Zeng, 2015. "The Impact of Health Insurance on Health Outcomes and Spending of the Elderly: Evidence from China's New Cooperative Medical Scheme," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(6), pages 672-691, June.
    7. Do, Thu Trang & Le, Hai Chau & Nguyen, Viet Cuong & Nguyen, Hong Thuy & Phung, Thanh Thu & Phung, Duc Tung, 2013. "Impact Assessment of Poverty Reduction Programs of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam," MPRA Paper 52876, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Chen, Yi & Shi, Julie & Zhuang, Castiel Chen, 2019. "Income-dependent impacts of health insurance on medical expenditures: Theory and evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 290-310.
    9. Budi Aji & Manuela De Allegri & Aurelia Souares & Rainer Sauerborn, 2013. "The Impact of Health Insurance Programs on Out-of-Pocket Expenditures in Indonesia: An Increase or a Decrease?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-19, July.
    10. Nguyen Viet Cuong, 2015. "Impact Evaluation of Development Programmes and Policies: Experiences from Viet Nam," Working Papers 2015-620, Department of Research, Ipag Business School.
    11. Mendolia, Silvia & Nguyen, Thi & Yerokhin, Oleg, 2017. "The Impact of Parental Health on Children's Schooling and Labour Force Participation: Evidence from Vietnam," IZA Discussion Papers 10651, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    12. Ali, Shehzad & Cookson, Richard & Dusheiko, Mark, 2017. "Addressing care-seeking as well as insurance-seeking selection biases in estimating the impact of health insurance on out-of-pocket expenditure," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 127-140.
    13. Thu Trang Vuong & Ha Nguyen & Quan-Hoang Vuong, 2016. "Health insurance thresholds and policy implications: a Vietnamese medical survey in 2015," Working Papers CEB 16-039, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    14. Darius Erlangga & Shehzad Ali & Karen Bloor, 2019. "The impact of public health insurance on healthcare utilisation in Indonesia: evidence from panel data," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 64(4), pages 603-613, May.
    15. Phuong Huu Khiem & Yu-Chen Kuo, 2022. "Health insurance reform impact on children’s educational attainment: evidence from Vietnam," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 20(4), pages 1255-1285, December.
    16. Neelsen, Sven & Limwattananon, Supon & O'Donnell, Owen & van Doorslaer, Eddy, 2019. "Universal health coverage: A (social insurance) job half done?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 246-258.
    17. Do, Trang T. & Whittaker, Andrea & Davis, Mark DM., 2024. "Financial struggles and coping with the aftermath of breast cancer care: An ethnographic study in Vietnam," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 360(C).
    18. Thang Dang, 2018. "Do the more educated utilize more health care services? Evidence from Vietnam using a regression discontinuity design," International Journal of Health Economics and Management, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 277-299, September.
    19. Jay Pan & Xiaoyan Lei & Gordon G. Liu, 2016. "Health Insurance and Health Status: Exploring the Causal Effect from a Policy Intervention," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 25(11), pages 1389-1402, November.
    20. Quan-Hoang Vuong & Thu Trang Vuong, 2016. "Medical insurance and expenditure thresholds for Vietnamese patient satisfaction with healthcare services," Working Papers CEB 16-041, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:12:p:6097-:d:1168093. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.