​Impact of health insurance on use of maternal health services

With health insurance on the rise in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), a number of studies have evaluated its impact on the use of general health care services, but there has been limited evidence on the impact of health insurance on use of maternal health services. However, in the context of global maternal and child health priorities, there is a growing need to evaluate whether health insurance has contributed to improved use of maternal health care. Using nationally representative data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), a recent study assesses the impact of health insurance on the use of antenatal care and facility-based delivery care in Ghana, Indonesia, and Rwanda – countries that have a high level of health insurance coverage and more mature schemes. All the study countries health insurance schemes primarily focus on the poor and heavily subsidize, or even waive premiums for them. Read more>>