The Impoverishing Effect of Adverse Health Events : Evidence from the Western Balkans

This paper investigates the extent to which the health systems of the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and Kosovo) have succeeded in providing financial protection against adverse health events. The authors examine disparities in health status, healthcare utilization, and out-of-pocket payments for healthcare (including informal payments), and explore the impact of healthcare expenditures on household economic status and poverty. Methodologies include (i) generating a descriptive assessment of health and healthcare disparities across socioeconomic groups, (ii) measuring the incidence and intensity of catastrophic healthcare payments, (iii) examining the effect of out-of-pocket payments on poverty headcount and poverty gap measures, and (iv) running sets of country-specific probit regressions to model the relationship between health status, healthcare utilization, and poverty. On balance, the findings show that the impact of health expenditures on household economic wellbeing and poverty is most severe in Albania and Kosovo, while Montenegro is striking for the financial protection that the health system seems to provide. Data are drawn from Living Standards and Measurement Surveys.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Mendola, Mariapia, Bredenkamp, Caryn, Gragnolati, Michele
Language:	English
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2007-12
Subjects:	ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE, AGRICULTURAL WORKERS, ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE, AMBULATORY CARE, BULLETIN, CAPITA HEALTH EXPENDITURE, CATASTROPHIC EXPENDITURE, CATASTROPHIC EXPENDITURES, CATASTROPHIC HEALTH SPENDING, CHRONIC DISEASE, CHRONIC ILLNESS, CITIES, DEMAND FOR HEALTH, DEMAND FOR HEALTH CARE, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DIFFERENTIALS IN HEALTH, DISABILITY, DISEASES, DISPARITIES IN HEALTH, DOCTORS, DRUGS, EAST EUROPE, ECONOMIC RESOURCES, ECONOMIC REVIEW, ECONOMIC STATUS, ELDERLY, ELDERLY POPULATION, EQUITY IN ACCESS, ETHNIC GROUPS, EXPENDITURES, FEMALE CHILDREN, FINANCIAL IMPACT, FINANCIAL PROTECTION, FINANCIAL RISK, FINANCING HEALTH CARE, FOOD NEEDS, GENDER DIFFERENTIALS, HEALTH AFFAIRS, HEALTH CARE, HEALTH CARE COSTS, HEALTH CARE DEMAND, HEALTH CARE EXPENDITURE, HEALTH CARE FACILITIES, HEALTH CARE SERVICES, HEALTH CARE SPENDING, HEALTH CARE UTILIZATION, HEALTH COST, HEALTH COSTS, HEALTH DEMAND, HEALTH ECONOMICS, HEALTH EXPENDITURE, HEALTH EXPENDITURES, HEALTH FACILITIES, HEALTH FINANCING, HEALTH INSURANCE, HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE, HEALTH INSURANCE SCHEME, HEALTH ORGANIZATION, HEALTH PRICES, HEALTH PROVIDERS, HEALTH SECTOR, HEALTH SERVICE, HEALTH SERVICES, HEALTH SPENDING, HEALTH STATUS, HEALTH SYSTEM, HEALTH SYSTEM REFORM, HEALTH SYSTEMS, HEALTH-CARE, HEALTH-CARE EXPENDITURE, HEALTHCARE EXPENDITURE, HEALTHCARE EXPENDITURES, HEALTHCARE SYSTEM, HOSPITAL CARE, HOSPITAL UTILIZATION, HOSPITALIZATION, HOSPITALS, HOUSEHOLD BUDGET, HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURE, HOUSEHOLD INCOME, HOUSEHOLD LEVEL, HOUSEHOLD SIZE, HOUSEHOLD SURVEY, HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS, HUMAN CAPITAL, HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, ILL HEALTH, ILLNESS, ILLNESSES, IMPACT ON HEALTH, IMPACT ON POVERTY, INCIDENCE OF POVERTY, INCOME, INCOME CONSTRAINT, INCOME COUNTRIES, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, INDIVIDUAL HEALTH, INEQUALITIES IN HEALTH STATUS, INEQUALITY, INFANTS, INFORMAL PAYMENTS, INSURANCE, INSURERS, INTERNATIONAL POVERTY LINE, INTERNATIONAL POVERTY LINES, LABOR SUPPLY, LATIN AMERICAN, LEVEL OF EDUCATION, LIVING STANDARDS, LOCAL COMMUNITY, LOW-INCOME COUNTRIES, MEDICAL CARE, MEDICAL EXPENSES, MEDICAL PERSONNEL, MEDICAL SERVICES, MEDICAL STAFF, MEDICAL SUPPLIES, MEDICINES, MIDWIVES, MINISTRY OF HEALTH, MORBIDITY, NATIONAL POVERTY, NATIONAL POVERTY LINES, NUMBER OF PEOPLE, NURSE, NURSES, NUTRITION, OUTPATIENT CARE, PARAMEDICS, PATIENT, PAYMENTS FOR HEALTH SERVICES, PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION, POCKET PAYMENT, POCKET PAYMENTS, POCKET PAYMENTS FOR HEALTH CARE, POLICY RESEARCH, POLICY RESEARCH WORKING PAPER, POLITICAL ECONOMY, POOR, POOR HOUSEHOLDS, POOR PEOPLE, POPULATION DIVISION, POPULATION ESTIMATES, POPULATION GROUPS, POVERTY ASSESSMENT, POVERTY ASSESSMENT TEAM, POVERTY GAP, POVERTY IMPACT, POVERTY INCIDENCE, POVERTY LINE, POVERTY LINES, POVERTY MEASURES, POVERTY STATUS, PRESCRIPTION MEDICINE, PRESCRIPTION MEDICINES, PREVENTIVE HEALTH SERVICES, PRICE OF HEALTH CARE, PRIVATE CARE, PRIVATE DOCTORS, PRIVATE SECTOR, PROBABILITY, PROGRESS, PUBLIC EXPENDITURE, PUBLIC HEALTH, PUBLIC HEALTH EXPENDITURE, PUBLIC HOSPITAL, PUBLIC PROVIDERS, PUBLIC SECTOR, PUBLIC SPENDING, REMOTE AREAS, REMOTE REGIONS, RESPECT, RURAL, RURAL AREA, RURAL AREAS, RURAL POOR, RURAL POPULATION, RURAL REGIONS, SCHOOL QUALITY, SEX, SOCIAL HEALTH INSURANCE, SOCIAL HEALTH INSURANCE SCHEMES, SOCIAL SCIENCE, TRANSPORTATION, URBAN AREAS, URBAN CENTERS, URBAN POPULATION, VULNERABLE GROUPS, WORKERS, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2007/12/8881009/impoverishing-effect-adverse-health-events-evidence-western-balkans https://hdl.handle.net/10986/7547
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