Can supplementary private health insurance reduce vulnerability to expected poverty and catastrophic health expenditure in China?

ABSTRACT:

Background

In China, where social health insurance (SHI) covers over 95% of the population, supplementary private health insurance (SPHI) primarily addresses high out-of-pocket (OOP) payments that remain after SHI reimbursements. In line with the policy objective of alleviating the OOP burden, this study aims to evaluate the impact of SPHI on vulnerability to expected poverty (VEP) and catastrophic health expenditure (CHE).

Methods

A cross-sectional dataset consisting of 25,568 samples was obtained from the 2023 National Health Service Survey (Shandong). Three-stage feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) method was employed to estimate VEP. CHE was measured by OOP healthcare payments that equalled or exceeded 40% of a household's capacity to pay. To address potential endo

SUBMITTER: Dong S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12551337 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature