HEALTH INSURANCE AND MEDICAL IMPOVERISHMENT IN RURAL CHINA: EVIDENCE FROM GUIZHOU PROVINCE

2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (03) ◽  
pp. 727-745 ◽  
Author(s):  
YUMEI ZHANG ◽  
MATEUSZ J. FILIPSKI ◽  
KEVIN Z. CHEN
Keyword(s):  
Rural China ◽  
Poverty Rate ◽  
Guizhou Province ◽  
First Order ◽  
Percentage Points ◽  
Poverty And Inequality ◽  
Cooperative Medical Scheme ◽  
Poor Area ◽  
Micro Level ◽  
Medical Impoverishment

We analyze the effects of the New Rural Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) on poverty, using micro-level household data from 17 villages in a poor area of China’s Guizhou province. A four-wave panel dataset allows us to follow NCMS through its reforms. First-order impact assessments suggest NCMS helps reduce the poverty rate by up to 3 percentage points, and the poverty gap by up to 15 percentage points. It also reduces the contribution of health expenditures to inequality as measured by Gini coefficient. The benefits of NCMS in terms of poverty and inequality appear considerably larger after major reforms in 2009, which expanded benefits and coverage.

Government Programs Can Reduce Poverty

2021 ◽  
pp. 114-123
Author(s):  
Mark Robert Rank ◽  
Lawrence M. Eppard ◽  
Heather E. Bullock
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
The United States ◽  
Poverty Rate ◽  
Welfare Programs ◽  
Government Programs ◽  
Transfer Rates ◽  
Social Welfare Programs ◽  
Poverty And Inequality ◽  
The Social

Chapter 15 provides an analysis of the effectiveness of social welfare programs in reducing poverty. Comparing pretransfer with post-transfer rates of poverty across a range of OECD countries demonstrates that poverty can be substantially reduced. The myth that government programs do not work in addressing poverty is simply incorrect. A number of European countries are able to cut their rates of poverty by up to 80 percent as a result of robust social policies aimed at reducing poverty and inequality. In the United States, the Social Security and Medicare programs have been particularly effective in reducing the poverty rate among the elderly population.

scholarly journals Comparison of Inpatient Distribution among Different Medical Alliances in County Region: a Longitudinal Study on a healthcare reform in Rural China

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yifan Ran ◽  
Hongxia Gao ◽  
Dan Han ◽  
Guilin Hou ◽  
Yingchun Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Inequality ◽  
Rural China ◽  
Interrupted Time Series ◽  
T Test ◽  
Interrupted Time Series Analysis ◽  
Multiple Group ◽  
Reform Period ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Cooperative Medical Scheme ◽  
Township Hospitals

Abstract Background: Three types of Medical Alliances (MAs) have been built in most county regions in China. These MAs are led by main three county hospitals to drive the development of township hospitals. This paper aims to evaluate the actual effect of China’s MAs reform in rural area on inpatient distribution especially among different categories of MAs. Methods：We obtained 2008-2015 claims data on enrolled residents from the New Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) in Y County, Hubei Province of China. We considered January 2008–December 2010 as the pre-reform period and January 2011–December 2015 as the post-reform period. Independent sample t-test and single-group interrupted time series analysis (ITSA) were used to compare the number of inpatients per month in the three MAs including 3 county hospitals and 10 township hospitals before and after the reform. Paired t-test and multiple-group ITSA were used between township hospitals within MAs and outside MAs. Results：The MAs reform in Y County increased the number of inpatients and improved the service capacity of both county hospitals and township hospitals within MAs. After the reform, the number of inpatients per month in county hospitals had an upward trend, with a slope of 31.01 person/month (P < 0.000). Approximately 19.99 new inpatients were admitted to township hospitals monthly after the reform (P<0.000). Furthermore, township hospitals within MAs had a substantial increase in the number of inpatients (10.45 new inpatients monthly) compared with those outside MAs. Conclusion: The MAs reform in Y county effectively improved the capability of medical services in the county and decreased health inequality significantly. However, it also caused further imbalance in the county region in terms of the medical institutions among the three county hospitals and the different township hospitals, which contained the risk of new health inequality.

scholarly journals The role of automatic stabilizers and emergency tax–benefit policies during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ecuador

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Xavier Jara ◽  
Lourdes Montesdeoca ◽  
Iva Tasseva
Keyword(s):  
Poverty Line ◽  
Poverty Rate ◽  
Income Poverty ◽  
Economic Shocks ◽  
New Family ◽  
Poverty And Inequality ◽  
Household Disposable Income ◽  
Household Incomes ◽  
Income Decile

This paper makes use of tax–benefit microsimulation techniques to quantify the distributional effects of COVID-19 in Ecuador and the role of tax–benefit policies in mitigating the immediate impact of the economic shocks. Our results show a dramatic increase in income poverty and inequality between December 2019 and June 2020. The poverty rate, measured with the national poverty line, goes up from 25.7 to 58.2 per cent over this period and extreme poverty increases from 9.2 to 38.6 per cent. Inequality measured by the Gini coefficient increases substantially from 0.461 to 0.592. On average, household disposable income drops by 41 per cent. The new Family Protection Grant provides income protection for the poorest income decile. However, overall tax–benefit policies do little to mitigate the losses in household incomes due to the pandemic.

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