Willingness to Pay for a National Health Insurance (NHI) in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-sectional Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abeer Alharbi
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Health Insurance ◽  
Willingness To Pay ◽  
National Health Insurance ◽  
National Health ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Maximum Amount ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional

Abstract Background Public health services in Saudi Arabia are provided free of charge to its citizens at the point of use. Recently, however, the government has realized that this model is unsustainable in the long run. Therefore, Saudi decision-makers are seeking to have a sustainable health system through the introduction of a contributory National Health Insurance that require making regular financial contributions from its members. Objective This study aims to explore the people’s willingness to pay for a National Health Insurance system in Saudi Arabia. The study also aims to understand the factors affecting their willingness or unwillingness to pay NHI, such as, their demographic and socio-economic characteristics, the type of their usual health care provider, and their satisfaction with the current healthcare services.Methods A cross-sectional study design with Contingent Valuation (CV) technique was used to measure the value of National Health Insurance based on an individual’s willingness to pay. The data were collected from 475 participants using an online survey via Google Forms between March 2021 and April 2021. Frequencies, logistic regression, and linear regression, were conducted to answer the research questions.Results The percentage of individuals who was willing to pay for NHI was higher than those who were not willing to pay (62.9%) vs (37.1%). There was a significant association between the type of usual healthcare provider and the likelihood of paying for NHI (OR CI = 0.20 to 0.51, p< 0.05=0.00). Also, there was a significant association between satisfaction with healthcare services and the likelihood of paying for NHI (OR CI = 0.02 to 0.31, p< 0.05=0.00). The median amount of money the people were willing to pay as a monthly contribution for NHI was 100 SAR (26.5 USD) with the average being 152 SAR (40 USD). There was a significant association between age and the maximum amount the participants were willing to pay (ß=-0.15,t=-2.55,p<0.05=0.01). In addition, the results show a significant relationship between income and the maximum amount of money people were willing to pay (ß=-0.25,t=3.81,p<0.05=0.001).Conclusion This study provided some evidence that most of the population of Saudi Arabia were willing to pay for NHI if implemented. The factors that appeared to influence the willingness to pay and the amount of monthly payment included the type of usual source of care, satisfaction with current public services, age, and income.

scholarly journals Evaluation of e-health (Seha) application: a cross-sectional study in Saudi Arabia

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abeer Alharbi ◽  
Joharah Alzuwaed ◽  
Hind Qasem
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Advanced Technology ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Technical Problems ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Ease Of Access

Abstract Background The Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia is expanding the country’s telemedicine services by using advanced technology in health services. In doing so, an e-health application (app), Seha, was introduced in 2018 that allows individuals to have face-to-face visual medical consultations with their doctors on their smartphones. Objective This study evaluated the effectiveness of the app in improving healthcare delivery by ensuring patient satisfaction with the care given, increasing access to care, and improving efficiency in the healthcare system. Methods A cross-sectional study design was used to assess the perceptions of users of the Seha app and non-users who continued with traditional health services. The data were collected using an online survey via Google Forms between June 2020 and September 2020. Independent t tests and chi-square (χ2) tests were conducted to answer the research questions. Results There was a significant difference between users and non-users in terms of ease of access to health services (t =  − 9.38, p < 0.05), with app users having a higher mean score (4.19 ± 0.91) than non-users (3.41 ± 1.00); satisfaction with health services (t =  − 6.33, p < 0.05), with users having a higher mean score (3.96 ± 0.91) than non-users (3.45 ± 0.94); and efficiency (only one visit needed for treatment) (t =  − 3.20, p < 0.05), with users having a higher mean score (3.71 ± 0.93) than non-users (3.45 ± 0.93). There were significant associations between the use of the Seha app and age (χ2 = 8.79, p < 0.05), gender (χ2 = 22.19, p < 0.05), region (χ2 = 19.74, p < 0.05), and occupation (χ2 = 22.05, p < 0.05). There were significant relationships between the three items (on access, satisfaction, and efficiency) and experiencing technical issues (t = 4.47, t = 8.11, and t = 3.24, respectively, p < 0.05), with users who faced technical problems having significantly lower mean scores for all three items. Conclusion This study provided evidence that the Seha app improved the delivery of healthcare in Saudi Arabia. Users of the app had a better health experience in terms of their perceived ease of access to healthcare services; their satisfaction with healthcare services; and the efficiency of the system, measured by the number of required doctor visits. Other factors that appeared to influence the use of the app included age, gender, usual source of care, and technical difficulties.

scholarly journals Degree of regional variation and effects of health insurance-related factors on the utilization of 24 diverse healthcare services - a cross-sectional study

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenjia Wei ◽  
Agne Ulyte ◽  
Oliver Gruebner ◽  
Viktor von Wyl ◽  
Holger Dressel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Insurance ◽  
Managed Care ◽  
Influencing Factors ◽  
Healthcare Utilization ◽  
Regional Variation ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Cross Sectional

Abstract Background Regional variation in healthcare utilization could reflect unequal access to care, which may lead to detrimental consequences to quality of care and costs. The aims of this study were to a) describe the degree of regional variation in utilization of 24 diverse healthcare services in eligible populations in Switzerland, and b) identify potential drivers, especially health insurance-related factors, and explore the consistency of their effects across the services. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study using health insurance claims data for the year of 2014. The studied 24 healthcare services were predominantly outpatient services, ranging from screening to secondary prevention. For each service, a target population was identified based on applicable clinical recommendations, and outcome variable was the use of the service. Possible influencing factors included patients’ socio-demographics, health insurance-related and clinical characteristics. For each service, we performed a comprehensive methodological approach including small area variation analysis, spatial autocorrelation analysis, and multilevel multivariable modelling using 106 mobilité spaciale regions as the higher level. We further calculated the median odds ratio in model residuals to assess the unexplained regional variation. Results Unadjusted utilization rates varied considerably across the 24 healthcare services, ranging from 3.5% (osteoporosis screening) to 76.1% (recommended thyroid disease screening sequence). The effects of health insurance-related characteristics were mostly consistent. A higher annual deductible level was mostly associated with lower utilization. Supplementary insurance, supplementary hospital insurance and having chosen a managed care model were associated with higher utilization of most services. Managed care models showed a tendency towards more recommended care. After adjusting for multiple influencing factors, the unexplained regional variation was generally small across the 24 services, with all MORs below 1.5. Conclusions The observed utilization rates seemed suboptimal for many of the selected services. For all of them, the unexplained regional variation was relatively small. Our findings confirmed the importance and consistency of effects of health insurance-related factors, indicating that healthcare utilization might be further optimized through adjustment of insurance scheme designs. Our comprehensive approach aids in the identification of regional variation and influencing factors of healthcare services use in Switzerland as well as comparable settings worldwide.

scholarly journals The superior service based on the highest number of visits and income of Hajj Hospital Surabaya in The National Health Insurance era

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachmad Cahyadi ◽  
Stefanus Supriyanto ◽  
Ratna Dwi Wulandari
Keyword(s):  
Internal Medicine ◽  
Health Insurance ◽  
National Health Insurance ◽  
National Health ◽  
General Surgery ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Medical Rehabilitation ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Number Of Visits

Background: A hospitals’ superior service is expected to be of higher value than other available provisions, which consequently differentiates the facility from others, as the branding easily attracts the community attention. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to identify the most needed and profitable health services from existing hospitals. Design and methods: This was a descriptive research performed with a cross sectional study approach. The variables studied include the number of visits, and revenue based on National Health Insurance (JKN). Results: Findings show that the polyclinics were the highest number of visits between 2016 and 2017 include Cardiac, Internal Medicine, Medical Rehabilitation, Nerve, General Surgery, and also Dental & Mouth. Conversely, those with the most significant income include Heart, Polyclinics, Dental & Mouth, as well as General Surgery Polyclinics. Moreover, the Medical Rehabilitation and Internal Medicine outpatient installations demonstrated negative INA income, while the already running featured Services in high demand were Heart, Nerve, Dental & Oral, and also General Surgery polyclinics. Conclusions: In can be concluded that not all polyclinics with high traffic generate positive income, hence it is necessary to monitor and analyze National Health Insurance (JKN) monthly income.

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