Determinants of health insurance ownership among South African women

Abstract

Background: Studies conducted in developed countries using economic models show that individual-and household-level variables are important determinants of health insurance ownership. There is however a dearth of such studies in sub-Saharan Africa. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between health insurance ownership and the demographic, economic and educational characteristics of South African women.

Determinants of enrolment in the NHIS for women in Ghana – a cross sectional study

“…Kirigia et al [27] show that having excellent or good health had a negative effect on the log of odds of health insurance ownership among women in South Africa.…”

“…The choice of the estimation model for this study is based on the expected utility theory which has been used to explain decision making under conditions of uncertainty in Welfare economics (27,(38)(39). Cutler and Zeckhauser [39] have explained that the value of health insurance is rooted in the unpredictability of medical spending associated with ill-health.…”

“…A number of empirical studies have also shown that there are several factors that determine women's enrolment in insurance schemes [ 27 -30]. Kirigia et al, [27] identified some demographic and socio-economic attributes of South African women that influenced health insurance ownership. Studies in Ghana, have found income, religion, age and access to relevant information on health as significant predictors of demand for insurance [28 -30].…”

Payment for Health Care and Perception of the National Health Insurance Scheme in a Rural Area in Southwest Nigeria

“…It has been shown that awareness and adequate knowledge about health insurance has positive correlation with membership of a health insurance scheme 14 Previous studies have shown that membership of a form of health insurance is more likely among men, those with higher education as well as those with chronic illnesses. 38,39 For various reasons, awareness about health insurance is likely to be high among these three categories of individuals. In this study, the higher the formal education, male respondents and health expenditure of less than ₦2,000 in a month were predictors of awareness about the NHIS.…”

Towards Universal Health Coverage: Exploring the Determinants of Household Enrolment into National Health Insurance in the Kassena Nankana District, Ghana

“…In fact, Sen (1999) argues that both better education and better health help in earning higher incomes, while Adams (2011) is unequivocal, pointing out that post-secondary education improves the chances of both households and individuals of finding employment and earning higher incomes. In South Africa, Kirigia et al (2005) found out that households with at least a matriculation or secondary level of education were two times more likely to be in possession of a health insurance policy than those with a lower level of education. Again in Moldova, Richardson et al (2012) specifically reported that self-employed agricultural sectors workers were over 27 times more likely to lack insurance cover as compared to those employed in the formal sector.…”