No abstract available.
Health Expenditures*

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) case rate system in reducing out-of-pocket expenses among non-no balance billing (NBB) patients undergoing thyroidectomy under the Department of Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery of the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center from February to September 2018. Methods: Design: Prospective Cross- Sectional. Setting: Tertiary Government Hospital. Participants: Sixty-four (64) randomly selected patients with PhilHealth who underwent thyroidectomy who agreed to participate and reveal their statements of accounts. Results: Among the study population, 20% belonged to the no balance billing (NBB) category, with zero out-of-pocket expenses during their confinement. Eighty percent (80%) belonged to the non-NBB category and also incurred zero hospital charges. In addition, there was no significant difference in the individual categories of the hospital expenses between the two groups except for the surgical procedures (p= .018, 95% CI). The accumulated total expenses also did not significantly differ between the two groups (p= .063, 95% CI). The minimum amount billed was PhP 1,984.95, while the maximum amount charged was PhP 38,898.65, with a median of PhP 18,703.28 and interquartile range of PhP 4,251.78 (XU: PhP 20,848.74, XL : PhP 16,596.96). There were no reported out-of-pocket expenses from non-NBB patients. The actual cost of thyroidectomy did not differ significantly from the case rate provided by PhilHealth among all the RVS categories. Conclusion The PhilHealth case rate system is effective in reducing out-of-pocket expenses among non-NBB patients who underwent thyroidectomy in our institution during the study period.
Health Expenditures ; Thyroidectomy ; Health Expenditures

Results from some studies in rural area of Vietnam have shown that poor people are likely tend to sell assets while non poor people are able to pay for health care services. This makes poor people fall into poverty trap. Objectives: To identify the average household health expenditure during a year and sources of borrowing money and average amount of borrowing as well for health care services. Methods: 621 households were selected randomly from the Filabavi, Bavi District, Ha Tay Province. A longitudinal descriptive study was conducted for one year from July 2001 to June 2002. All selected households were interviewed one time per month. Results and conslusion: average payment household for health care services for one year was VND 519.000 (6.4% of total annual household income). Annual household income of poor group was VND 6,576,000, among this 8.4% was paid for health care services. There was 16.9% household had to borrow money for health care services average1y, while 23.1% of poor household had to borrow money for health care services. Borrowing sources included relatives (85%), neighbours (50%), Bank (26%), friends (15%), community organizations (9%) and private organizations with some interest (18%).
Health Expenditures, Rural Health

The expenditure structure and the sharing of the cost from in patients and out patient betweem subject with and without insurance subscriptive subject at commune and district level were analysed. Health Insurance service had supported importantly the subject at basic level especially the poors and the pensioneers who received 100% of allowance to access to the health care. Other expenditures, included also the gifts, from the insurance subscribers were higher consisderably than the subjects without insurance. For old person and pensioneers who hospitalized, these other expenditures account for high rate (60,91% at commune level and 60,32% at district level)
Health Expenditures ; Insurance

A multiple regression analysis using ordinary least square (OLS) is frequently used for the projection of healt expenditure as well as for the identification of factors affecting health care costs. Data for the analysis often have mixed characteristics of time series and cross section. Parameters as a result of OLS estimation, in this case, are no longer the best linear unbiased estimators (BLUE) because the data do not satisfy basic assumptions of regression analysis. The study theoretically examined statistical problems induced when OLS estimation was applied with the time series cross section data. Then both the OLS regression and time series cross section regression (TSCS regression) were applied to the same empirical data. Finally, the difference in parameters between the two estimations were explained through residual analysis.
Health Care Costs ; Health Expenditures*

BACKGROUND: It is expected that the demand for the information about the primary medical service in the forthcoming supersede age of communication will be on the increase. For that reason, family doctors who are in charge of the primary medical service have to play an important part in constructing a data-base for furnishing the medical information. This article presents a model which includes the roles of family doctors, constructing medical-related information site of family medicine in the communications net with PC to gat,her fundamental data in operating the system of medical information and elucidating the formation of medical-related information site and the effect of operating that system. METHODS: Since Aug. 20 in 1996, the site of family medicine, the program of medical information, has been set up in Unitel. The medical information of the site of family medicine is to be classified into two parts : for doctors and for the public. The former is composed of medicine documents, several kinds of medical data, a linkage with medicine site in Internet, movements of an academic society and information exchanges for friendship. The latter is mainly made up of some practical medical sense and medical counsel. RESULTS: From the opening the medical information site to Jul. 30 in 1997, 250 persons a day have connected with medical information site and this fact implied 15 hours connection a day in terms of the daily mean. The cases of health counsel averaged 6 cases connection a day and the annual statistics of those cases were about, 1980 cases. The major content of health counsel was related to common symptoms that could be settled in primary medical problem. According to the survey for connectors, most of connectors answered that the medical information through communications net was much more effective t.han that from other media in the educational aspects and very helpful in the prevention of diseases and in the medical expenditure. Above all, the medical information through communications net was very effective in correcting the mistaken practical medical sense. CONCLUSIONS: It is necessary for family doctors to give thought to the connection of both information communication and medicine and to have correct understanding of medical domain in the cyberspace. On the foundation of these necessities, all the family doctors have to make the best of their way to construct a database with rnedical data and to transfer these data into the computer sites.
Friends ; Health Expenditures ; Humans ; Internet

No abstract available.
Cervix Uteri* ; Female ; Health Expenditures*

Health ; Papua New Guinea ; Expenditures

OBJECTIVES: The Energy Expenditure Prediction ProgramTM (EEPP) has been considered as a simple and quantitative method to evaluate physical work load. However, the adoption of EEPP directly to Korean workers is problematic because it was developed in a laboratory setting for Caucasians. Therefore, this study was conducted to validate EEPP for Korean workers. METHODS: The study subjects consisted of 60 workers from two factories. Cycle ergometer test was conducted to calculate physical work capacity, and heart rate monitoring was conducted to check heart rate during work. After observing the task, energy expenditure was estimated by EEPP. RESULTS: EEPP underestimated energy expenditure less than EEHR (energy expenditure checked by heart rate) did(p<0.0001). The factors effecting EEHR were EEPP and task type. After dividing the task into regular and irregular tasks, the irregular task had a larger difference between the values from the two methods. We provided task specific regression models between EEHR and EEPP. CONCLUSIONS: Because EEPP underestimated energy expenditure, it needs to be adjusted before use with Korean workers. It is suggested that different adjusting equations are formulated for regular and irregular tasks. Further study to develop a specific energy estimation model appropriate for Koreans is needed to obtain more precise estimation.
Energy Metabolism* ; Health Expenditures ; Heart ; Heart Rate

This study was carried out to assess medical care expenditure of residents in urban poor area. The study population included 377 family members of 85 households in the poor area of Daemyung 8-Dong, Nam-Gu, Taegu and 442 family members of 96 households in a control area. The data was collected through self-administered q'iestionnaires completed by housewives. The survey was conducted. from , March 1 to May 31; 1992. The mean age was 31. 1 years in the poor area and 37. 1 years in the control area. The average number of households per house was 4.5 in the poor area and 4.5 in the control area. The frequency of medical care utilization per household in a one month period was 4.6 in the poor area and 4.3 in the control area. The average number of days of utilization was 12.9 in the poor area and 12.5 in the control area. The averge monthly income of a househlod in the poor area was 848,600 Won compared to the control area's 1,752,300 Won. The average monthly consumption expenditure of a household in the poor area was 568,800 Won and that in the control area 1,238,400 Won. The average medical care monthly expenditure per household was 34,500 Won in the poor area and 58,400 Won in the control area. The proportion of the medical care expenditure to monthly income and to monthly consumption expenditure was 4.1% and 6.1% respectively in the poor area, and 3.3% and 4.7%, respectively in the control area. The premium of medical insurance was 1.5% in both areas. The proportion of cost for drug was 57.4%, for medical appliance was 1.2%, and for medical treatment was 41.1% in the poor area and in the control area 52.4%, 1.9%, 45.7%, respectively. The highest proportion of medical care expenditures in the poor area was herb clinic utilization (36.9%). while hospital and clinic (37.8%) was the highest proportion in the control area. Mean medical care expenditure per visit was 7,400 Won in the poor area and 12,600 Won in the control area. Mean medical care expinditure per day was 2,800 Won in the poor area and 6.300 Won in the control area.
Daegu ; Family Characteristics ; Health Expenditures* ; Humans ; Insurance