Incidence and Intensity of Catastrophic Health Expenditure and Impoverishment among the Elderly: An Empirical Evidence from India

Abstract

Abstract World health statistics (2022) reports that about 1.4 billion people have incurred catastrophic health expenditure, and half of its population has been pushed into extreme poverty due to healthcare payments. The elderly population faces a higher risk of ill health, and seeking treatment is reflected in high out-of-pocket spending that results in catastrophic health expenditure and further impoverishment. This study aims to investigate the incidence and intensity of out-of-pocket spending, catastrophic health expenditure, and impoverishment among the older adults in India. Data utilizes from the 75th round of the national sample survey (NSS) based on household social consumption: health (schedule 25.0), 2018. The incidence and intensity of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) and impoverishment have been estimated using standard measures. The older adults spend about 17% of household consumption expenditure on healthcare services. The poorest older adults are spending the highest share of consumption expenditure on healthcare. Similarly, the elderly from rural, male, scheduled castes, and Christian show a larger share of healthcare consumption. The incidence and intensity of catastrophic health expenditure declines as the threshold level rises. The normalized poverty gap shows that the intensity of being pushed into extreme poverty is quite high. Financial protection along with vision might mitigate the risk of CHE among older adults.