Uptake of health insurance as a means of reducing infant and child mortality among mothers in Uganda. A case study of Kasubi Town

Abstract

The objective of this study was to assess the factors affecting the uptake of health insurance among women in Uganda. Therefore, it aims to find out whether age, place of residence, marital status, number of children, employment status, level of education, income level and affordability of health insurance have a significant relationship on the uptake of health insurance among mothers. It used primary data and was collected using questionnaires that were administered face to face on a sample of 100 respondents from Kasubi health center. The analysis was done using frequency distribution, Pearson’s chi-square and logistic regression. In the results, majority of the women did not use health insurance during pregnancy (74.49%), majority of the respondents suggested that health insurance would reduce child mortality (79.38%), slightly over half of the respondents (56.12%) delivered from private health facilities, almost a half of the respondents were single(48.98%), followed by 34.69% that were married, more than a half of the respondents were employed (64.29%) and more than a half of the respondents were not able to afford health insurance costs (69.39%). More than a half of the respondents reported their place of residence to be urban (64.29%). In the bivariate stage of this study, it was found that place of residence, place of birth delivery, affordability of health insurance and health insurance would reduce infant and child mortality had influence on the uptake of health insurance among mothers(P<0.1). In the multivariate analysis, the factors that significantly influenced the uptake of health insurance among mothers in Uganda were affordability of health insurance and health insurance would reduce child mortality(p<0.05) as indicated in Table 4.4. Mothers who reported that health insurance was affordable were 88% less likely to have health insurance than those who reported that health insurance was not affordable(OR=0.122). Mothers who reported that health insurance would reduce child mortality were 89% less likely to have health insurance than those who reported that health insurance does not reduce child mortality(OR=0.110) The findings indicate the need to; (i) establish Children’s Health Insurance Program. (ii) Giving free education lessons about health insurance.