• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.329-335
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• 2007

Objectives : To identify the effects of supplemental private health insurance on health care utilization and expenditure under the mandatory National Health Insurance(NHI) system in Korea. Methods : The data were collected by the National Cancer Center in Korea. Cancer patients who were newly diagnosed with stomach (ICD code, C16), lung(C33-C34), liver (C22), colorectal cancer(C18-C20) or breast(C50) cancer were included as study subjects. Data were gathered using a structured questionnaire from face-to-face interviews, the hospital Order Communication System (OCS) and medical records. Clinical, socio-demographic and private health insurance related factors were also gathered. The differences of health care utilization and expenditure were compared between those who have private health insurance and those who do not using t-test and multivariable regression analysis. Results : Individuals with private health insurance spent larger inpatient costs than those without, but no differences were found in utilization in other service such as hospital admissions, hospital days and physician visits. Conclusions : We found that private health insurance exerts a significant effect on the health care expenditure in inpatient service. These study results can provide a rational basis to plan a national health policy regarding private health insurance. Further studies are needed to investigate the impacts of private health insurance on cancer patients' outcomes and survival rates.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.128-143
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• 2010

Objectives : This study aims to estimate the oral antihyperglycemic medications adherence among ambulatory care with adult type 2 diabetes patients and to identify factors affecting the medication adherence in Korea. Methods : This study used the Korean National Health Insurance Database. Study population was 40,082 patients who were 20 years of age or older and first diagnosed with type 2 diabetes (ICD-10: E11) in 2004. The patients were followed up for two years in order to measure adherence with oral antihyperglycemic medications. The level of medication adherence was measured by the medication possession ratio (MPR). Results : The average MPR in the study population was 49.5%. The appropriate adherence rate (MPR$\geq$80%) was 29.4% and showed variation according to the characteristics of individual patients. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds of appropriate adherence increased with female (OR:1.21, CI:1.14-1.27), older age, increasing ambulatory care visits, health insurance (OR:1.53, CI:1.33-1.76), decreasing ambulatory care providers, using a specialized general hospital as their main attending medical institution (OR:10.08, CI:8.96-11.33), having co-morbidity, using polytherapy (OR:1.07, CI:1.01-1.13). Conclusions : The medications adherence for patient with type 2 diabetes is low in Korea, and shows variation according to the characteristics of patients. For proper management of diabetes, health care policy is expected to be enacted to improve medications adherence continuously. In particular, more intensive management is needed for patients with low medications adherence. Also, health care policy makers need to develop the program to induce health care utilization by a patient to be more concentrated with the same provider.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.157-172
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• 2011

The purpose of this study is to provide basic information for improving medical security between the Korean National Health Insurance Corporation and the private health insurance in Pusan Metropolitan area by investigating of the recognition with the benefit groups. Questionnaires of 431 were taken between Feb. 11th and Feb. 25th 2008. The survey was carried out to gather information about SES and contents of insurance and recognition between the benefit group of the Korean National Health Insurance and the private health insurance on the financial conditions and the stability. The result of survey is as follows. First, there is a difference between the National Health Insurance and the private health insurance on the financial conditions and the stability of the Korean National Health Insurance. Second, there is a high score at the private health insurance on the financial conditions and the stability of the private health insurance. Third, privatizing of a National Health Insurance is high score at increase of the premium, medical payments of the National Health Insurance group and is high score at enhance of quality of medical service and decrease of loss of medical payment of the private health insurance group. Therefore, to provides more information and improved medical security with the benefit group. it is necessary for concerns to put more efforts in creating Conflicting vs. Complementing of systemic base.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.251-268
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• 2005

This study analyzes the amendment history of Educare Law of Infants and Children, the Equal Employment Opportunity Law, and Employment Insurance Law, and also examines the present status of the employer-supported child care service through secondary analysis of other policy studies. The three laws concerning employer-supported child care can be said to hold in itself two main concepts: employers' obligations to provide child care, and government's financial support and administrative management. In terms of the first concept, laws have been amended to enlarge the number of enterprises legally-responsible for child care service and to relieve the financial burden from them. In terms of the second, laws have been amended to gradually extend the magnitude of government's financial support and to establish the systematic administrative management. Approximately a half of the policy target enterprises, however, is not complying the laws. In addition, employer-supported child care centers are only occupying less than 1% of the whole child care market. Thus, this study evaluates the current employer-supported child care service system and suggests several principles for its improvement.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.59-72
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• 2018

Objectives : This study was performed to investigate health care system recognition and influential factors using the data from the "2017 Health Care Experience Survey". Methods : Data on 7,000 participants in the Health Care Experience Survey were drawn and statistically examined using a t-test, ANOVA, and multiple regression analysis. Results : First, the significant factors of health care service satisfaction were education, income, region, chronic diseases, unmet medical needs, satisfaction with doctors and institutions, and the health care system's reliability and importance. Second, the influential factors of willingness to pay additional health insurance premium were age, occupation, income, health status, chronic diseases, unmet medical needs, satisfaction with health care institutions, limit to utilization of medical services, necessity of health care reform, and the health care system's reliability, satisfaction, importance. Conclusions : Since the additional burden for improving the health care has been negative to the socially disadvantaged, there should be efforts to provide stable health care funding for financial stability of the health insurances by considering public opinions and reaching social consensus.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.147-158
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• 2011

This study compares the degree of satisfaction and the causes of selecting facilities for stroke patients in the senior specialized hospitals and other senior care facilities. The research results are followed. First, The patients who held the level of senior long-term care used senior specialized hospitals, while the patients who had the level of 2 or 3 degree used senior care facilities. The patients helped by cooperative care service used senior care facilities, and the patients helped by private service or family service used senior specialized hospitals. Second, The patients in senior specialized hospitals had affirmative attitude for their service system, while the patients in senior care facilities preferred their various service systems. In the satisfaction of the facilities, the patients in senior care facilities felt more satisfaction to staff, environment, service, and other factors than the patients in hospitals did. Third, in the result of logistic analysis, the patients had an affirmative attitude in case that they had spouse, experience of senior specialized hospitals or senior care facilities, without senior long-term care insurance. They also valued the service standard and the staff quality. As this study points out, the overall preference is higher in the senior care facilities. So, the stroke patients recognized the new role between the hospitals and the facilities after the establishment of long-term senior medicare system. This research had some limitation for the research areas and numbers. So the data analysis for the types of facility and the responses may not be generalized. However, the standard of choosing facility and satisfaction will be a guideline for establishing a new future role between hospitals and facilities. This result will be used as a basic data for the renovation of long-term senior medicare insurance.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.1-26
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• 2009

Objectives : To identify target areas and set priorities among those areas identified for national quality evaluation. Methods : Target areas were identified from: i) analysis of the national health insurance claims data, mortality and prevalence data ii) various group surveys, including representatives from 22 medical specialty associations, 19 physician associations, QI staffs in hospital, civil organizations, and commissioners of Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service(HIRA) ⅲ) literature reviews and RAM(RAND/UCLA appropriateness method). The priority areas for national quality evaluation represented the full spectrum of health care and the entire life span. The criteria for selecting the priority areas were impact, improvability, and measurability. The priority areas were divided into three categories : short-term, mid-term, long-term. Results: Based on the group surveys and the data analysis, 46 candidates were selected as quality evaluation priority areas. 13 areas were selected as having a short-term priority areas: tuberculosis, community acquired pneumonia, stroke, ischaemic heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, chronic lower respiratory disease(asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), intensive care unit, emergency room, nosocomial infection, use of antibiotics, multiple medication and renal failure. This results suggested that we need to enlarge the target priority areas to the chronic diseases in short-term. Conclusions: The priority areas identified from the study will assist healthcare quality associated institutions as well as HIRA in selecting quality evaluation areas. It is required to develope and implement strategies for improving the quality of care within the next 5 years.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.56-62
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• 2017

Background: There have been deviations in the regional rate of certification in Korean long-term care insurance (LTCI). This study aimed to explore the determinants of the rate of certification in LTCI. Methods: The panel data of the year 2010-2014 of the 227 National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) regional office were used. Making use of 26 explanatory variables (socio-demographic factors, access to the long-term care services, etc.), we estimated the random effects model using STATA SE ver. 13.0 program (Stata Corp., College Station, TX, USA) and tried to find out the determinants of the regional rate of certification. Results: Estimation results showed that the most important determinants of the regional rate of certification in LTCI are the long-term care infrastructure such as capacity or number of the homecare service institution, sanatorium, or convalescent hospital. The number of the elderly who lives alone and the dimentia patients were positively related to the regional rate of certification in LTCI. Conclusion: The estimation results implied that the regional variation in the rate of certification in LTCI has nothing to do with the NHIS regional offices or their employees. To alleviate the deviation in the regional rate of certification in LTCI, we suggested the analysis of the deviation in the survey checklist. We also proposed to found the regional comprehensive support center to prevent the geriatric illness and to improve the residents' health, etc.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.40-48
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• 2019

Background: As of July 2015, per diem payment was changed from fee for service Therefore, this study aims to analyse changes in medical charges and medical services before and after enforcement of the palliative care, targeting palliative care wards in a general hospital, and provide basic data needed for development of per diem payment. Methods: The subjects of the study were a total of 610 cases consisting of 351 patients of service fee who left hospital (died) from July 2014 to June 2016 and 259 ones of per diem payment at Chosun University Hospital in Gwangju Metropolitan City. Results: The results are summarized as follows. First, after the palliative care system was applied, benefit medical service charges and insurance increased significantly (p<0.001). As benefit medical service charges increased, benefit private insurance payment increased significantly (p<0.001). Second, after the per diem payment was applied, total private insurance payment to medical institutes decreased significantly (p=0.050) and non-benefit also decreased significantly (p=0.001). Conclusion: It is suggested that additional rewards in the obligatory palliative care items should be continuously remedied and monitored to provide good quality hospice palliative care.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.79-93
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• 2005

The purpose of the study is to identify Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions (ACSC) and their potential health insurance applicability in Korea, using the correlation and regression analysis with the empirical data provided by Korean Health Insurance Review Agency(KHIRA). Here, ACSC would be thought of as conditions that when timely and effectively treated in the outpatient medical services can help reduce the risk of hospitalizations. As for ACSC, reducing accessibility for outpatient visit results in increasing hospitalization. In this respect, the ACSC concept is popularly adopted as one of the performance indicators of the national health system. As one of main results, fortifying the accessibility to necessary health care in a way of sharing appropriately the role with private health insurance can lead to the efficiency of national health care delivery systems in view of total health care expense, in particular in a case of ACSC children. Lastly, we would like to strongly suggest that the disease treatment data set reported to KHIRA needs to be opened to private insurance companies only for illness experience investigation.