Out-of-Pocket Health Expenditures Associated with Chronic Health Conditions and Disability in China

Abstract

The objective of this study is to estimate the extra costs of living associated with chronic health conditions and disabilities in China. Leveraging the 2018 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study involving 13,530 respondents aged 50 and over, we apply both an ordinary least squares linear regression model and a logistic model to analyze the correlation between medical out-of-pocket expenditures (OOPEs) and chronic health conditions, as well as disabilities measured by Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) limitations. This paper bridges the gap in the literature on OOPEs and their association with disabilities and chronic health conditions, respectively. We find that ADL limitations, IADL limitations, and chronic health conditions are consistently associated with higher OOPEs. The odds that older persons with disabilities and chronic health conditions incur OOPEs are two to three times higher than for persons without disabilities and chronic health conditions, respectively. Persons with disabilities and chronic health conditions have the highest OOPEs. The findings suggest that more policy and research attention is necessary to improve the financial protection of those with chronic health conditions and disabilities, including through access to comprehensive health insurance coverage.