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The use of voluntary health insurance in the access to specialist care: Evidence from the Italian NHS

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  • Brenna, Elenka
  • Giammanco, Maria Daniela

Abstract

We examine whether the endorsement of voluntary health insurance (VHI) in a Beveridge-oriented healthcare system may increase the probability of visiting a specialist. We use data from the 2019 European Health Interview Survey, which includes information on demographics, socioeconomic characteristics, health status, and healthcare access of over 30,000 Italian households. We also apply data from the Health for All dataset to measure the supply of physicians at regional level.

Suggested Citation

  • Brenna, Elenka & Giammanco, Maria Daniela, 2024. "The use of voluntary health insurance in the access to specialist care: Evidence from the Italian NHS," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:soceps:v:93:y:2024:i:c:s0038012124001058
    DOI: 10.1016/j.seps.2024.101906
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Voluntary health insurance; NHS equity of access; Specialist care; Beveridge systems; Trivariate recursive probit;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I13 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Insurance, Public and Private
    • I14 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Inequality
    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis

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