Health protection schemes such as health insurance and financial assistance provide immense help ... more Health protection schemes such as health insurance and financial assistance provide immense help and support to access health care services, especially to the poor and marginalized section of society. India is witness to low health-related expenditure, and the society's socioeconomic and demographic structure further drops health care access to the new bottom. Consequently, inequality in health care access is highly observed across many socioeconomic attributes. The condition of Bihar, the poorest state of India, is more alarming. The analysis suggests that financial support in terms of universal health insurance coverage considerably reduces out-of-pocket expenditure and thus health inequality. Further, the low health insurance coverage is not solely due to a lack of institutional commitment and implementation process; the cognitive behavior and attitude of people are equally responsible for low health care access. An intensive awareness program to show the benefit of the health insurance scheme and sensitization of people against the social stigma is important to provide better health care access and reduce health inequality.
Health equity is of particular concern in the Indian context in the light of widening economic in... more Health equity is of particular concern in the Indian context in the light of widening economic inequality and healthcare reforms which have wider ramifications on healthcare access. Despite various programs and interventions, a wide gap in health condition is observed in society among different castes, groups and income-classes. In this article, the inequality in healthcare access is studied at the cross-section of gender (man and women) and social groups—Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe (SC-ST), Other backward classes (OBC) and Others—and an attempt has been made to explore how much the women from SC-ST community are deprived of healthcare access in comparison to other gender-group intersections. To proceed with analysis, data on ‘National Sample Survey (NSS), 75th Round (2017–2018) on Health Consumptions’ are taken. Analyses are carried on in SPSS Ver.18 and Stata-16. Regression Analysis shows that women from SC-ST are 1.37 times more likely to non-access to healthcare services than men from the general category. Further, to measure the intensity of inequality in healthcare access, Wagstaff’s Concentration Index (CI) is calculated at –0.195 that shows income-related inequality highly persists among the poor. At last, the decomposition analysis of CI reveals that gender, income and social groups are some of the major contributory factors to CI, that is, health inequality. The results indicate despite the mandate of universal healthcare access, India is lagging in achieving equity in healthcare as the poor and marginalized are deprived of it.
The caesarean section (C-section) has become widely accepted as a safe intervention to minimize m... more The caesarean section (C-section) has become widely accepted as a safe intervention to minimize maternal delivery risk and reduce maternal and newborn mortality, and the share of C-section delivery in total delivery is increasing over time. Many studies assess the association of C-section with out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE). The present study attempts to measure the influence of change in place of residence on OOPE for normal/caesarean section delivery by place of hospitalization and type of healthcare facilities using National Sample Survey Organization 75th round data. The number of caesarean births is lower in public hospitals and the cost of delivery is high in private facilities. Distance of hospitalization causes catastrophic OOPE on maternal delivery, and the probability of caesarean delivery has also increased.
The Indian journal of labour economics, Dec 1, 2018
While migration of men improves the social position of women in the left-behind family by transfe... more While migration of men improves the social position of women in the left-behind family by transferring power and autonomy, it may also reinforce gender inequality. The present study aims to explore this migration–empowerment relationship by addressing the research question of whether labour migration brings about changes in gender relations and empowers women, measured in terms of intra-household decision-making and work participation. Using India Human Development Survey (2011–12) data, the paper assesses the social impact of labour migration on left-behind women in one of the highest out-migrating states in East India (Bihar). The study finds that migration of men is unlikely to improve women’s position, as family relations are governed by the institution of patriarchy, and economic vulnerability rather than emancipation is the reason for their participation in paid nondomestic work. The social cost of labour migration thus seems to outweigh its benefit in Bihar, as it does not initiate the process of empowerment and poses financial challenges.
Health protection schemes such as health insurance and financial assistance provide immense help ... more Health protection schemes such as health insurance and financial assistance provide immense help and support to access health care services, especially to the poor and marginalized section of society. India is witness to low health-related expenditure, and the society's socioeconomic and demographic structure further drops health care access to the new bottom. Consequently, inequality in health care access is highly observed across many socioeconomic attributes. The condition of Bihar, the poorest state of India, is more alarming. The analysis suggests that financial support in terms of universal health insurance coverage considerably reduces out-of-pocket expenditure and thus health inequality. Further, the low health insurance coverage is not solely due to a lack of institutional commitment and implementation process; the cognitive behavior and attitude of people are equally responsible for low health care access. An intensive awareness program to show the benefit of the health insurance scheme and sensitization of people against the social stigma is important to provide better health care access and reduce health inequality.
Health equity is of particular concern in the Indian context in the light of widening economic in... more Health equity is of particular concern in the Indian context in the light of widening economic inequality and healthcare reforms which have wider ramifications on healthcare access. Despite various programs and interventions, a wide gap in health condition is observed in society among different castes, groups and income-classes. In this article, the inequality in healthcare access is studied at the cross-section of gender (man and women) and social groups—Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe (SC-ST), Other backward classes (OBC) and Others—and an attempt has been made to explore how much the women from SC-ST community are deprived of healthcare access in comparison to other gender-group intersections. To proceed with analysis, data on ‘National Sample Survey (NSS), 75th Round (2017–2018) on Health Consumptions’ are taken. Analyses are carried on in SPSS Ver.18 and Stata-16. Regression Analysis shows that women from SC-ST are 1.37 times more likely to non-access to healthcare services than men from the general category. Further, to measure the intensity of inequality in healthcare access, Wagstaff’s Concentration Index (CI) is calculated at –0.195 that shows income-related inequality highly persists among the poor. At last, the decomposition analysis of CI reveals that gender, income and social groups are some of the major contributory factors to CI, that is, health inequality. The results indicate despite the mandate of universal healthcare access, India is lagging in achieving equity in healthcare as the poor and marginalized are deprived of it.
The caesarean section (C-section) has become widely accepted as a safe intervention to minimize m... more The caesarean section (C-section) has become widely accepted as a safe intervention to minimize maternal delivery risk and reduce maternal and newborn mortality, and the share of C-section delivery in total delivery is increasing over time. Many studies assess the association of C-section with out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE). The present study attempts to measure the influence of change in place of residence on OOPE for normal/caesarean section delivery by place of hospitalization and type of healthcare facilities using National Sample Survey Organization 75th round data. The number of caesarean births is lower in public hospitals and the cost of delivery is high in private facilities. Distance of hospitalization causes catastrophic OOPE on maternal delivery, and the probability of caesarean delivery has also increased.
The Indian journal of labour economics, Dec 1, 2018
While migration of men improves the social position of women in the left-behind family by transfe... more While migration of men improves the social position of women in the left-behind family by transferring power and autonomy, it may also reinforce gender inequality. The present study aims to explore this migration–empowerment relationship by addressing the research question of whether labour migration brings about changes in gender relations and empowers women, measured in terms of intra-household decision-making and work participation. Using India Human Development Survey (2011–12) data, the paper assesses the social impact of labour migration on left-behind women in one of the highest out-migrating states in East India (Bihar). The study finds that migration of men is unlikely to improve women’s position, as family relations are governed by the institution of patriarchy, and economic vulnerability rather than emancipation is the reason for their participation in paid nondomestic work. The social cost of labour migration thus seems to outweigh its benefit in Bihar, as it does not initiate the process of empowerment and poses financial challenges.
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