Patient costs of hypertension care in public health care facilities in Kenya

BACKGROUND: Hypertension in low‐ and middle‐income countries, including Kenya, is of economic importance due to its increasing prevalence and its potential to present an economic burden to households. In this study, we examined the patient costs associated with obtaining care for hypertension in public health care facilities in Kenya. METHODS: We conducted a cross‐sectional study among adult respondents above 18 years of age, with at least 6 months of treatment in two counties. A total of 212 patients seeking hypertension care at five public facilities were interviewed, and information on care seeking and the associated costs was obtained. We computed both annual direct and indirect costs borne by these patients. RESULTS: Overall, the mean annual direct cost to patients was US$ 304.8 (95% CI, 235.7‐374.0). Medicines (mean annual cost, US$ 168.9; 95% CI, 132.5‐205.4), transport (mean annual cost, US$ 126.7; 95% CI, 77.6‐175.9), and user charges (mean annual cost, US$ 57.7; 95% CI, 43.7‐71.6) were the highest direct cost categories. Overall mean annual indirect cost was US$ 171.7 (95% CI, 152.8‐190.5). The incidence of catastrophic health care costs was 43.3% (95% CI, 36.8‐50.2) and increased to 59.0% (95% CI, 52.2‐65.4) when transport costs were included. CONCLUSIONS: Hypertensive patients incur substantial direct and indirect costs. High rates of catastrophic costs illustrate the urgency of improving financial risk protection for these patients and strengthening primary care to ensure affordability of hypertension care.