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KMID : 1155220180430030223
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Journal of the Korean Society of Health Information and Health Statistics
2018 Volume.43 No. 3 p.223 ~ p.230
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Inequity Trend on Medical Utilization by Diseases
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Kim Youn-Joo
Lee Won-Kee
Kam Sin
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Abstract
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Objectives: Equal medical access to equal medical needs is critical to health care. The purpose of this study was to investigate the inequity trend on medical utilization by diseases.
Method: We estimated the horizontal equity of subjects over 20 years old and the medical service frequency and medical expenditure by disease using the Korea Health panel data from 2009 to 2014.
Results: The horizontal equity index of medical expenditure was shown to be a negative (-) number of both the actual and necessary personal medical expenditure over six years from 2009 to 2014, with lower actual expenditure than required in low-income level. However, the absolute number was decreasing more and more over the years, so it was becoming balanced on horizontal equity. The horizontal equity index of medical service frequency was 0.016 in 2009, showing a pro-rich tendency to use more medical service in high-income level, and a pro-poor trend in 2014 -0.006, which means more medical service use in low-income level.
Conclusions: Therefore, it is estimated that the horizontal equity index on medical expenditure by income level is gradually decreasing due to the effect of various policy for reducing the patient’s own burden rate. Thus, if there is the same medical expenditure when using medical services for equal medical needs, the burden on the lower income class would be greater than the burden on the upper income. So it should be sustainedly implemented the policies with reducing the burden on medical expenditures for the lower income groups.
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KEYWORD
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Health equity, Horizontal equity index, Medical utilization, Korea health panel
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