Impact of Out-of-Pocket Spending for Individuals Covered by Health Insurance in Chennai City

Abstract

One of the important Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations is Universal Health Coverage (UHC). The Government of India through its sustained policies has initiated many schemes and policies towards achieving Universal Health Coverage. The State of Tamil Nadu is a pioneer in reforms related to mass scale health insurance in India. The programmes of the State of Tamil Nadu are worth emulating and putting into practice as they have proven to be efficient and sustained. The one factor that poses a challenge to the efficiency of the health insurance schemes, be it Government supported, private or corporate supported health insurance policies are Out-of- Pocket (OOP) spending. OOP spending at the point of service surpasses all the other sources of financing suggesting that even more dynamic policies need to be framed to address this Himalayan challenge. The OOP spending in India forms the major part in financing the health care needs. The OOP spending has resulted in impoverishment in Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu comparing to other States in India has an edge regarding healthcare and individual per capita income. It is a matter of concern when we extrapolate this to the rest of India. This study aims at analysing the impact of OOP spending on the individuals covered by health insurance in Chennai.