Financing mechanisms for health insurance and the implications on equity

Abstract

The purpose of this presentation/paper has been to raise some of the issues for analyzing the impact of different financing mechanisms for health systems including health insurance on equity, inspired by the article by Wagstaff et al.: Equity in the finance of health care: some further international comparisons. The financing mix in the LAC countries has been discussed, focusing on financing of health insurance, and their implications for equity in financing. Some of the difficulties with this discussion is the lack of data about the reality confronting the beneficiaries in the insurance schemes, regarding access, quality of the services offered and informal co-payments.

It is warmly recommended that studies be undertaken in the LAC countries to analyze more in depth the financial equity of the insurance schemes, using the methodology from the studies of the OECD countries.