• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.319-344
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• 2012

This study decomposed Concentration Index(CI) and Hiwv Index(HI) of medical care utilization by subgroups: sex, age group, and region. CI and HI were decomposed into "the between group" component, "within group" component, and a residual. The results of analysis are summarized as follows; First, there was no influence of sex on the equity of medical care utilization measured by the numbers of visiting clinic. However, "within group" component of female explained .0441 among HI, .1035. This means that poor women's underutilization of medical care is the important factor in determining its degree of equity. Second, age groups had a decisive effect on the equity of medical care utilization measured by the numbers of visiting clinic. they explained -.0085 among HI, -.0170. Third, internal equality within elderly group was the most important factor in determining HI measured by the medical care cost. Finally, "within group" component of urban area explained .0535 amomg HI, ,1035 measured by medical care cost. This indicated that the urban poor's underutilization of medical care was very important factor in explaining its degree of equity. There was the poor's underutilization of medical care within the groups as female, the elderly, and urban areas. This significantly explained the equity of medical care costs.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.26-49
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• 2007

The purpose of this study is to analyze the equity of health care utilization by income groups in terms of both quantity and quality of care, which is measured by expenditure, type of care, and type of health care institutions. Equity in health care utilization is measured by HIwv index, based on the survey of 1,480 Gwangju-Jeonnam residents. Health care utilization in terms of the probability and quantity of outpatient and inpatient care show equitable or pro-poor inequitable distribution, whereas the distribution of health care expenditure, which can account for the quality of care, is pro-rich inequitable, implying that the better off tend to use more expensive medical care. In terms of the types of care, simple visits for basic care show equitable distribution, whereas the distribution of the utilization of traditional tonic medicine, comprehensive health examination, CT, MRI, and ultrasound is pro-rich inequitable. Utilization of general hospitals and traditional health institutions show pro-rich inequitable distribution, hospitals and dental care institutions equitable, and physician clinics and public health centers pro-poor inequitable.

• Journal of Urban Science
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.51-58
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• 2019

This study examines the determinants of emergency care utilization and equity of access to care in elderly Koreans. Based on the data from the 2014 Korea Health Panel Survey, descriptive and logistic regression analysis was performed. The sample for this study was 1,313 individuals who participated in interviews. Predisposing factors such as age, sex, and education were significant determinants of emergency care utilization. Differences in need do not fully account for the original differences observed between subgroups of older Koreans. Health status was important determinant of older Koreans using emergency care services. Spending medical expense did not ameliorate the subgroup differences in the use of emergency care services. Nonetheless, spending medical expense remains a particularly important predictor of emergency care utilization. Health care reforms in Korea should continue to concentrate on insuring effective universal emergency care, implying that all older Koreans with need receive effective coverage. Future study is also needed to understand the access barriers that may exist for the selected demographic subgroups, i.e., those over 75, women, less educated persons, and those with higher medical expense.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.155-172
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• 1995

This study is an empirical analysis on the equity in the delivery of heatlh care under the Korean Medical Insurance Corporation System. The purposes of this study are to find out effects of income on the health care utiliztion and measure the income-related inequity in the distribution of health care. This study was carried out based on the fact that the health insurance program has been organized to achieve the equity objective, "equal treatment for equal needs". Of 41, 828 insured persons who had been diagnosed in the 1993 Health Screening Test and utilifzation data from 1, January 1993 through 31, December 1993 were derived from the Benefit Managment File. Inequity was measured by means of I) share approach, ii) standardization concentration curve approach, iii) inequity index, iv) test for inequity. The major findings were as follows : 1. The expenditure shares of the top two quintile groups exceeded their morbidity shares, whereas the opposite was true of the bottom three quintile groups, Which showed a positive HI$_{LG}$ inequity index, suggesting the presence of some inequity favoring the rich group. 2. Compared with other residential areas, the rural area showed the highest positive HI$_{LG}$ irrespective of need indicatior applied. 3. Standardized expenditure concentration indices adjusted by age, gender and need structure were also found to be positive, and therefore still indicated that there has been inequity favoring the rich after the standardization. 4. The Loglikelihood Ratio (LR) test for the statistical significance of income-related inequity of medical care utilization was carried out using the logistic regression model. The resulting loglikelihood ratio test statistic value was 176, which did exceed the 0.5 percent critical value of the chi-square distribution with 28 degrees of freedom, which is 50.993. Therefore, the null hypothesis of no income-related inequity of medical care utilization was rejected at the 99.5 percent confidence level. 5. The Regression based F-test has been carried out for analyzing the income-related inequity of medical expenditure in terms of age, gender, morbidity indicators as explanary variables. The hypothesis of the absence of income-relate inequity was rejected for all need indicators at the 95% confidence level.nce level.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.288-302
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• 2019

Background: The one-person households (OPH) are rapidly increasing and vulnerable to socioeconomic and health problems. Because it is predicted to be inequitable to health care utilization, we would like to find out about the equity of health care utilization of the OPH by comparison with the multi-person households (MPH). Methods: This study followed the theoretical framework of Wagstaff and van Doorslaer (2000), O'Donnell and his colleagues (2008), where the horizontal inequity index is the difference between the concentration indices of actual health care utilization and health care needs. This study employed the 9th Korea Health Panel survey, and a total of 10,807 cases were analyzed. Health care needs were measured by age, sex, subjective health status, chronic disease count, Charlson's Comorbidity Index, limitation of activities, and disability. Results: Compared with the MPH, there were pro-poor inequities in hospitalization, emergency utilization, hospitalization out-of-pocket payments, and pro-rich inequities in outpatient out-of-pocket payments for the OPH. The decomposition of the concentration index revealed that chronic disease count made the largest contribution to socioeconomic inequality in outpatient utilization. Age, health insurance, economic activities, and subjective health status also proved more important contributors to inequality. The variables contributing to the hospitalization and emergency utilization inequity were age, education, Charlson's Comorbidity Index, marital status, and income. Conclusion: Because the OPH was more vulnerable to health problems than the MPH and there were pro-poor inequities in medical utilization, hospitalization, and emergency costs, it is necessary to develop a policy that can correct and improve the portion of high contribution to medical utilization of the OPH.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.104-128
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• 2003

Equity in health care has taken priority in the Korean government's policy agenda after the government-led national health insurance achieved universal coverage in 1989 along with the final inclusion of the self-employed as beneficiary. The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which there exists difference or inequality in the utilization of health care, especially cancer inpatient services among income classes. We analysed the utilization of cancer inpatient services of residents in Jeju Island for a year of 2000, using the national health insurance data for qualification of beneficiaries and utilization of health care. The independent variable are 10 income classes based on the national health insurance fee imposed on each household for a year of 2000. The dependent variables of this study are an amount of cancer inpatient health care utilization measured by cancer admission days and cancer treatment costs. Also, cancer inpatient health care utilization is analysed by three categories divided into utilization in medical care institutions (1) within Jeju Island, (2) outside Jeju Island, and (3) all within and outside Jeju Island. We measured concentration index of cancer inpatient health care utilization. This analysis showed negative concentration index within Jeju Island and positive outside Jeju Island, and positive in all within and outside Jeju Island. This results suggest inequality against the relatively poor income groups in utilization of cancer inpatient health care services. Especially, inequity of cancer inpatient health care would be more serious in Jeju Island of Korea, considering that lower income groups reportedly have higher incidence rates in most of cancer and thus use more health services.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.167-203
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• 1992

The effects of regional health insurance on access to ambulatory care are examined in this paper. Access is measured as use-disability ratios. The data are collected in a household interview survey at Hwachon county before and after the introduction of regional health insurance. Before the introduction of regional health insurance, low-income class has less contacts with physicians than high-income class. This disparity in accessibility among economic classes is reduced with the health insurance coverage, but not removed, even after adjusting for health need.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.36-61
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• 2009

This study focused on finding the variation of medical service utilization, paths of medical service utilization and medical payments of the patients died by cerebrovascular diseases. For this study, data of the one-year episodes of the health insurance subscribers died in 2004 were selected. The frequency of medical visits, the lengths of stays, the days of outpatient visits, the total period of medical services and the total medical payments were compared by the characteristics of the suppliers and utilizers. This study is useful in reviewing the equity of medical service utilization because it analyzed variance in utilization by episodes. In oder to collect accurate data of the patients died by cerebrovascular diseases in 2004 the 2004 reimbursement data of all medical institutions were matched to the data of funeral fee payment by the National Health Insurance Corporation from January 2004 to May 2005. The major results of the study are as follows. The variation of medical service utilization of cerebrovascular diseases was influenced by supplier factors suppliers, such as types and locations of medical institutions and user factors such as sex and age. It was suspected that the reimbursement by fee-for-service contributed to the variation quite a lot, but we could not compare the variation between the different reimbursement systems in Korea. On the basis of analyzing results this study suggests that the factors of suppliers and utilizers should be reviewed to reduce the under use and over use expressed by variations of medical service. The processes of care, effective communication and management system should be investigated for the equity of medical service utilization and also. alternative medical services would be recommended to reduce the high medical payment. Additionally to find other causes of variation further in depth study controling the severity of diseases, socio-economic status of the users and the system factors is required.

• Journal of the Health Care and Life Science
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.275-283
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• 2022

This study aims to identify the factors affecting medical use in Seoul metropolitan region (SMR) by patients with a congenital malformation in the Jeollabuk-do region and suggest methods to improve equity in regional healthcare utilization. The study conducted the chi-square test and logistic regression analysis using Korean National Hospital's in-depth injury survey data from 2016 to 2020. The results are as follows. First, medical utilization in SMR was high in the age group of 19-44. Second, the bigger the bed size, the higher the medical utilization in SMR. Third, in the case of the principal diagnosis, the medical utilization in SMR was high in the patients with congenital Anomaly of the Tracheobronchial System. Fourth, the medical utilization in SMR was high in the group of inpatients with higher severity after surgery. Based on these results, government-run healthcare policies and planning should be established to achieve regional equity of medical utilization.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.589-599
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• 2001

The purpose of this study was to analyze the relation amongst health status, health care costs. health service utilization among the low income elderly who were 60 years of age or older, earning a half of the average Korean family income. The cross-sectional descriptive survey research we conducted used families randomly sampled nationwide. The data were collected from July 12 to August 7, 1999 and the total sample was 1.259 household members (421 households). These were the major findings. 1. As for the health status. 72.4% of respondents fell ill in the last 1 month; 54% of respondents had chronic disease. 2. As for the health care cost. the cost of hospitalization and the medical treatment were 1.069,000 won and 226.000won. respectively. 59.3% of respondents experienced a burden from the monthly health care expenses. 3. As for the health service utilization for the last 3months. 28.5% of respondents didn't utilize the health service. In addition, 22.2% of respondents gave up a medical treatment because of economic situation (88.8%). 4. The statistically significant determinants of health service utilization are old age, female, living with a spouse, unemployed state, medicare, and more days sick. 5. It is shown conclusively that equity and efficacy of the health care policy are to be considered for lower income older adult.