Socio-demographic determinants of out-of-pocket health expenditure in a rural area of Wardha district of Maharashtra, India

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: In India, health expenditure accounts for less than 5 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product and the level of out-of-pocket (OOP) spending is 69.5 per cent of total health expenditures. OOP expenditure exacerbates poverty and has a negative impact on equity and can increase the risk of vulnerable groups slipping into poverty. This study was conducted to estimate the OOP expenditure on health and catastrophic health expenditure and their socio-demographic determinants in a rural area of Maharashtra, India. METHODS: This was a prospective observational study involving monthly follow up visits, done in 180 households of three villages under a primary health centre in Wardha district, India. RESULTS: Of the 180 families, 18.9 per cent had catastrophic health expenditure over a period of one year. The median total out-of-pocket health expenditure was ‘1105.00 with median medical expenditure being ‘863.85 and median non-medical health expenditure being ‘100.00. A total of 151 (83.9%) had enough money, 27 (15%) borrowed money and two (1.1%) of them sold assets. The significant correlates for the ratio of out-of-pocket health expenditure to total annual income of the family were the occupation of head of family, caste category and type of village. The significant correlate for catastrophic health expenditure was type of village. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: Around one-fifth of the households had catastrophic health expenditure. People with no healthcare facility located in their village had higher odds of having catastrophic health expenditure. Private providers were preferred for the treatment of acute illnesses and medical college hospitals for hospitalization.