Socio-Economic Differentials in Impoverishment Effects of Out-of-Pocket Health Expenditure in China and India: Evidence from WHO SAGE

Kaushalendra Kumar, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)
Ashish Singh, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay
Abhishek Singh, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)
Joel Negin, University of Sydney
Somnath Chatterji, World Health Organization (WHO)

Using data from the WHO Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (WHO-SAGE) we examined the socioeconomic differences in the effects of out-of-pocket health expenditure (OOPHE) on impoverishment in China and India. About 7% and 8% of the population in China and India, respectively, fall below poverty line due to OOPHE. The percentage shortfall in income for the population from the poverty line due to OOPHE is 2% in China and 1.3% in India. Logistic regression result shows that lower wealth, inpatient care, and outpatient care are significantly associated with greater odds of falling below the poverty line due to OOPHE in both China and India. Also, individuals belonging to households without a formally educated head are more likely to fall below poverty line due to OOPHE in China; whereas, not having health insurance and residence in rural areas increase the chance of becoming poor due to OOPHE in India.