Economics Of Public And Private Healthcare And Health Insurance In India

"This book critically examines the public and private healthcare systems in India. Analysing the current scenario of health insurance in India, it studies the inadequacy of public healthcare services and unaffordability of private health care facilities. The volume investigates government sponsored health insurance schemes and advocates for the need of universal health insurance coverage. It details India's per capita health expenditure and provides policy inputs on how healthcare systems and insurance coverage can be improved in the country. Further, it explores the financial parameters of health insurers and standalone private health insurance companies, and also discusses the adverse impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Indian healthcare. An insightful read on the state of healthcare in India, this book will be of interest to researchers and academics working in the fields of insurance, healthcare administration and management, public health policy and practice, health and social care, medical sociology, and sociology & social policy. It will also be useful for think tanks and policy makers"--

Health crises plague most economies irrespective of their average per capita income levels, and this is largely due to chronic and repeated illnesses. Contextualizing this paradigm in India, India Public Finance and Policy Report: Health Matters is an attempt to discuss some of the most crucial issues faced by Indian health sectors and to examine alternatives for policymakers to provide affordable, reliable, and effective healthcare facilities to the people. This report compares three government-run social health insurance schemes—the Swasthya Sathi Scheme, the Aarogyasri Community Insurance Scheme, and a community-based health insurance scheme—to examine their effectiveness in reducing households’ vulnerability to health shocks. Additionally, it brings to light the manipulation of health package deals by private hospitals to increase the amount patients spend on them. The report also estimates the inefficiencies across states and districts of India with regard to healthcare personnel and infrastructure. Moreover, the editors have put together a series of interviews with different stakeholders associated with the healthcare system, such as doctors, nurses, patients, and medical representatives, who discuss the problems that perturb this sector. Written in a lucid and non-technical language, this is a deeply researched theoretical and empirical commentary about healthcare and public polices in India.

Many Americans believe that people who lack health insurance somehow get the care they really need. Care Without Coverage examines the real consequences for adults who lack health insurance. The study presents findings in the areas of prevention and screening, cancer, chronic illness, hospital-based care, and general health status. The committee looked at the consequences of being uninsured for people suffering from cancer, diabetes, HIV infection and AIDS, heart and kidney disease, mental illness, traumatic injuries, and heart attacks. It focused on the roughly 30 million-one in seven-working-age Americans without health insurance. This group does not include the population over 65 that is covered by Medicare or the nearly 10 million children who are uninsured in this country. The main findings of the report are that working-age Americans without health insurance are more likely to receive too little medical care and receive it too late; be sicker and die sooner; and receive poorer care when they are in the hospital, even for acute situations like a motor vehicle crash.

This book critically examines the public and private healthcare systems in India. Analysing the current scenario of health insurance in India, it studies the inadequacy of public healthcare services and unaffordability of private health care facilities. The volume investigates government sponsored health insurance schemes and advocates for the need of universal health insurance coverage. It details India’s per capita health expenditure and provides policy inputs on how healthcare systems and insurance coverage can be improved in the country. Further, it explores the financial parameters of health insurers and standalone private health insurance companies, and also discusses the adverse impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Indian healthcare. An insightful read on the state of healthcare in India, this book will be of interest to researchers and academics working in the fields of insurance, healthcare administration and management, public health policy and practice, health and social care, medical sociology, and sociology & social policy. It will also be useful for think tanks and policy makers.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of universal health coverage in India. It starts by setting the historical context and politics of the debates around universal health coverage (UHC) in India and proceeds to analyze the present crisis of public health in the country. The book examines the present policies on the pharmaceutical industry, missing links in universalizing health, and the importance of social determinants of health. It is divided into five sections, and some of the topics covered include the difference between comprehensive primary health care and universal health care, public health and medical care, health service, and health system. The chapters are contributed by scholars and practitioners based on historical, interdisciplinary, empirical, and policy research. The book is insightful to academics, public health administrators, policymakers, practitioners, and students interested in health care and organization, looking to transform theory into policy and practice.

A collection of articles by eminent Indian health economists and health policy analysts, providing reviews of many aspects of health financing in India, including public health expenditures at national and state levels; the development and functioning of public and private hospitals; health insurance; the private health sector; household health exp.

Financial protection against the cost of illness and inclusion of vulnerable groups will require better mobilization and use of private means. Private voluntary health insurance already plays an important role in mobilizing additional resources to the health sector and protecting against the catastrophic cost of illness in some countries. This review explores the context under which private voluntary health insurance could contribute to an improvement in the sustainability of the health sector and financial protection in other countries.