The effect of commercial health insurance and health policy incentives on health risk assessment of residents

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Due to the limitations of social medical insurance, commercial medical insurance is necessary. OBJECTIVE: The study aims to analyze the practical effects of commercial health insurance and health policy incentives. METHODS: The health risk assessment is performed referring to data released by China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). RESULTS: The effect coefficient of commercial health insurance for residents’ four-week prevalence is 0.067, with that for residents’ self-evaluation health being –0.032, and that for residents’ rate of medical treatment being 0.094, which is significant at the 0.01 level. Commercial health insurance has different effects on residents’ mental health. The residents who purchase commercial health insurance have 8.2%higher anxiety degree and 7.3%higher depression degree; however, their sleep condition index increases by 5.7%. CONCLUSIONS: Commercial health insurance can’t improve the four-week prevalence or self-evaluation health significantly. Nevertheless, it can improve the medical treatment rate. Commercial health insurance exhibits complicated results in terms of residents’ mental health levels. Although it has definitely improved the quality of sleep and well-being of residents and reduced loneliness, it can negatively affect mental health indexes such as anxiety and depression.