CBHI in India (FP7)
Research + Structured Technical Assistance
Project Title:Developing Efficient & Responsive Community Based Micro Health Insurance in India
PROJECT CATEGORY:Research + Structured Technical Assistance
OBJECTIVE:
Examine a new model of CBHI that is affordable, responsive and inclusive, designed to increase :
- Equitable access to health care
- Financial protection.
BACKGROUND:
In most developing countries, including India, the lion's share of health spending is made out of pocket. This leads to impoverishment and low access to health care, especially for weaker segments of the population. Community based health insurance (CBHI) has the potential to reduce the severe consequences of unforeseen illness. However, in order to make use of the scarce resources available and build systems offering value to the poor, it is important to have a detailed and evidence based understanding on the impact of CBHI.
PROJECT CONCEPT:
This project sets out to investigate the aspects important for the successful implementation of CBHI. It does so through a set of controlled randomized trials through which CBHI is implemented in villages of two states of India (Uttar Pradesh and Bihar). Rigorous longitudinal research is used to identify causal effects of CBHI on equitable access to healthcare and financial protection. The two states selected for implementation are among the poorest in India, yet the intervention areas vary from each other in their socio-economic, epidemiological and cultural profiles. We seek this diversity in order to enhance the validity of the claim that lessons learned could be applied to other settings as well. We apply quantitative research (longitudinal panel; series of economic experiments) along with in-depth qualitative analysis and spatial data.
PARTNERS:
The project will be conducted by MIA in partnership with:
- Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands;
- University of Cologne, Germany;
- BAIF Development Research Foundation, India;
- NIDAN:, India;
- Shramik Bharti, India
FUNDING:
This project is being funded by a grant through the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Commission (EC-FP7), of the European Union.
DURATION:2009-2013
COUNTRY:India
LOCATION:
Field Work:
- Site 1: Kanpur Dehat District, Uttar Pradesh
- Site 2: Pratapgarh District, Uttar Pradesh
- Site 3: Vaishali District, Bihar
The main researchers are based in India (MIA), Germany (University of Cologne), and the Netherlands (Erasmus University-Rotterdam)
CONTACT:Pradeep Panda, pradeep@mia.org.in
PROGRESS:
The CBHI India project was initiated in August 2009. The project's core research hypotheses as well as data collection tools were refined in the following months, in light of the discussion held at the project's first Advisory Board meeting in November 2009. In December 2009 and January 2010, the first half of qualitative data collection was conducted. From March 2010 to May 2010, baseline quantitative data was collected for all three sites. The baseline spatial study commenced in May 2010 and run till the end of June 2010. The second half of the baseline qualitative study will be carried out in July 2010. Regarding the implementation side of the project, some workshops on health insurance have been completed in all three project sites.
- May 2010: Baseline data from approximately 6000 household surveys has been completed across three project sites.
- May 2010: Initiation workshop on CBHI finished in all three project sites.
- March 2010: A meeting among all India-based project partners was held in New Delhi to discuss and outline strategy for the roll-out of CBHI in the three project sites.
