Research Article

Absence of appropriate hospitalization cost control for patients with medical insurance: a comparative analysis study

  1. Xilong Pan1,
  2. Hassan H. Dib1,*,
  3. Minmin Zhu2,3,
  4. Ying Zhang1,
  5. Yang Fan4

Article first published online: 28 OCT 2008

DOI: 10.1002/hec.1421

Issue

Health Economics

Health Economics

Volume 18, Issue 10, pages 1146–1162, October 2009

Additional Information

How to Cite

Pan, X., Dib, H. H., Zhu, M., Zhang, Y. and Fan, Y. (2009), Absence of appropriate hospitalization cost control for patients with medical insurance: a comparative analysis study. Health Economics, 18: 1146–1162. doi: 10.1002/hec.1421

Author Information

  1. 1

    Peking University Health Science Center, Health Policy and Management Department, School of Public Health, Beijing, People's Republic of China

  2. 2

    School of Health and Medical Management, Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei Province, People's Republic of China

  3. 3

    Shenzhen Nanshan Chronic Diseases Prevention and Cure Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China

  4. 4

    Tongji Hospital of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei Province, People's Republic of China

*Peking University Health Science Center, Health Policy and Management Department, School of Public Health, No. 38, Xue Yuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 3 SEP 2009
  2. Article first published online: 28 OCT 2008
  3. Manuscript Accepted: 20 AUG 2008
  4. Manuscript Revised: 4 AUG 2008
  5. Manuscript Received: 18 NOV 2006

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Keywords:

  • medical insurance;
  • hospitalized expenses;
  • uncomplicated acute appendicitis;
  • uncomplicated acute cholecystitis;
  • benign uterine tumors;
  • normal delivery

Abstract

Objective: Expose the weak loops in the Chinese medical insurance coverage and uncover hospitals' role of over-pricing hospitalized insured patients compared with those non-insured.

Methods: A multi-linear regression method was used to analyze hospitalization expense for insured and uninsured patients with uncomplicated acute appendicitis, cholecystitis, benign uterine tumors, and normal delivery.

Results: Hospitalization cost is higher among insured than uninsured patients due to longer hospitalization lengths of stay, type of disease (highest among cholecystitis patients), type of gender – females, old-aged people, and type of marital status – singles, as well as drugs expenses, surgical expenses, and other medical acts.

Conclusion: Require a better government's supervision system over medical insurance expenses such as reforming methods of payments, building up new cost compensation mechanism, and unifying and stabilizing prices for each category of medicines. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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