THE IMPACT OF STATE HEALTH INSURANCE SCHEME UPON FINANCIAL PROTECTION FROM CATASTROPHIC HEALTH EXPENDITURE: AN EMPIRICAL EXAMINATION OF KANO STATE CONTRIBUTORY HEALTH INSURANCE SCHEME

Kamilu Yakubu Ishaq

Abstract


States health insurance schemes are becoming increasingly recognised as an instrument for financing healthcare in Nigeria. Taking the example of Kano State contributory health insurance scheme in Nigeria. This study analyzed and investigated the impact of State health insurance scheme upon financial protection from catastrophic health expenditure among the insured using two binary logit and bivariate probit model(s). Although the biprobit not reported. Empirical findings from the study revealed that after 6 years of commencement about 28.5% of the employees are yet to be enrolled in the health insurance scheme, partly due to negligence from the employees in one hand and due to lack of adequate awareness campaign from the authorities concern on the other hand. Also empirical representation from the models marginal effect suggest that being enrolled reduced the probability of catastrophic health expenditure by 24% and that level of education is an increasing function of enrollment and a decreasing function of catastrophic health expenditure buy 24% and 24.5% respectively. Moreover, finding with regards to health insurance awareness HIA and consultation of general practitioner CGP being a proxy of serious illness are statistically significant that HIA is an increasing function of enrolment and for CGP any additional hospital made is associated with decrease in catastrophic health expenditure by 26.2%. This empirical study pointed to a reduction of catastrophic health expenditure among the sampled respondent traced to their enrollment into the health insurance scheme. Hitherto, the State government should exploit this medium as a means of indirect cross subsidisations for the poor and foster awareness campaign among the employees to close the gap of non-enrollment.


Keywords


Contributory Health Insurance Scheme, Financial Protection, Catastrophic Health Expenditure, Logit Model, and Probit Model

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