• Health Policy and Management
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.195-206
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• 2016

Background: Concentration of patients to large hospitals is serious problem in Korea. The purpose of this paper is to propose appropriate policy direction to relieve concentration of patients to large hospitals. It is focused on evaluation of the possibility of family doctor system as a policy alternative to relieve concentration of patients to large hospital by empirically analyzing the effect of usual source of care (USC) on large hospitals medical care use. Methods: Korea Health Panel conducted 2009, 2012, 2013 by KIHASA (Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs) and NHIS (National Health Insurance Service) was used for analysis. For dependent variables, first, the ratio of the amount of using large hospital to total amount of using medical care, and second, the amount of using large hospital are estimated. Independent variables are having an USC and type of USC. Panel analysis was done with above variables. Results: Main results are as follows. First, having an USC increases using large hospital. Second, having a domestic clinic type USC decreases using large hospital and ratio of using large hospital. Third, the effect of domestic clinic type USC is greater in older group, less income group, worse health status group, not having private insurance group, and having chronic disease group. Conclusion: These results show that family doctor program can be a policy alternative to relieve concentration of patients to large hospital. Nonetheless, primary care system in Korea is unsatisfied. It is recommended to reinforce primary care system and family doctor system to relieve concentration of patients to large hospitals.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.247-254
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• 2015

Objectives : The aim of this study was to analyze the influence of foreign and institutional investors in the pharmaceutical industry on R&D investments. Methods : The empirical analysis was done for the years 2009 to 2013 which examined the period after the influence of the financial crisis. Financial statements and comments in general and internal transactions were extracted from the TS-2000 of the Korea Listed Company Association. STATA 12.0 was used as the statistical package for the panel analysis. Results : The results show that the shareholding ratio of foreigner investors turned out to have a statistically significant influence on R&D investment. No statistical significance was found in the shareholding ratio of institutional investors. Conclusions : The findings of this study, which indicate that a higher shareholding ratio of foreigner investors leads to greater R&D investment, indicate that foreign investors directly or indirectly impose pressure on a manager to make R&D investments for the long-term.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.48-56
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• 2019

Purpose: As an interest in the elderly medical expenses increases, elderly people are increasingly purchasing indemnity private health insurance. Authors tried to investigate factors of having the indemnity private health insurance among the elderly people aged 65-75 years. Methods: We conducted panel logit regression analysis on 2,465 subjects as of 2016 using Korean Health Panel from 2010 to 2016. The dependent variable was whether to enroll in the indemnity private health insurance. The explanatory variables included socio-demographic characteristics, economic factors, health status, and health behaviors. Findings: As a result of the analysis of factors of purchasing indemnity private health insurances, it was analyzed that people with larger family, educated, pensioner, high household income or no disability were more likely to have indemnity private health insurance. Practical Implications: Considering the results of this study, the factor of purchasing indemnity private health insurance among elderly people were more likely to be their economic than demographic characteristics such as sex, age, and marital status. Policy makers should make efforts to reduce the burden on the elderly medical expense and to improve equity of medical use through institutional improvement such as raising age limit and lowering premium of indemnity private health insurance and expansion of public health insurance.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.283-295
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to identify the effect of psychological health and physical health on health-related quality of life(HRQoL) in Korean Echo Generation by using Korea Health Panel Data 2013. The Korea Health Panel Data 2013 were collected from February to October 2013 and 2,261 respondents were analyzed. The data were analyzed by Independent t-test, ANOVA and multiple regression using SPSS WIN 24.0 program. he mean score of HRQoL was 0.98. The effect of unmet medical needs, psychological & physical stress, unmet basic needs, anxiety about the future, depression, suicidal ideation, smoking, sleeping time, hearing problem, eating problem, restriction of activity, and self-rated health status) were significant on HRQoL. Health care providers should consider the effect of psychological and physical health when they design program for the improvement of HRQoL for Korean echo generation in community.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.242-253
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• 2014

Background: The low benefit coverage rate of South Korea's health security system causes catastrophic health expenditure. And catastrophic health expenditure can be the cause of the transition to and persistence of poverty. This study was conducted to ascertain the effect of catastrophic health expenditure on the transition to and persistence of poverty, using 6 years of the Korea Welfare Panel Study Data. Methods: This study was conducted among the 22,528 households that participated in the Korea Welfare Panel Study, 2007-2012. Catastrophic health expenditure was defined as equal to or exceeds thresholds (10%, 20%, 30%, and 40%) of household's capacity to pay. The effect of catastrophic health expenditure on the transition to and persistence of poverty was ascertained via multivariate logistic regression. Results: Four-point-seven percent to 20.6% of the households are facing catastrophic health expenditure. Rates of the transition to (relative risk [RR], 18.6 to 30.2) and persistence of (RR, 74.8 to 76.0) poverty of households facing catastrophic health expenditure was higher than households not facing catastrophic health expenditure. Even after adjusting the characteristics of the household and the household head, catastrophic health expenditure was found to affect transition to (odds ratio [OR], 2.11 to 3.04) and persistence of (OR, 1.53 to 1.70) poverty. Conclusion: To prevent catastrophic health expenditure and transition to and persistence of poverty resulting from catastrophic health expenditure, the reinforcement of South Korea's health security system including the benefit coverage enhancement is required.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.131-142
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• 2016

Objectives : Using several waves of the Panel Study of Worker's Compensation Insurance(PSWCI), this study analyzed the effect of work hours on health and lifestyle of Korean workers in a sample from the 2013~2014 year (The first survey was completed in August-October 2013; the second survey was completed in August-October 2014). Methods : The research subjects were 1,312 men from among employees who responded to a 2013 PSWCI panel report. Statistical analyses were done with SAS version 9.3 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA). Results : According to the results of the analysis, the male subjects had differences in economic activity and health conditions based on the length of working hours. There was a significant relationship among working hours and life satisfaction, and the correlation coefficients were statistically significant. The results show that workplace conditions has a direct positive effect on life satisfaction as we anticipated in the hypothesis. Conclusions : Management should focus on the factors identified in this study when developing employment interventions programs to improve the the promotion of healthy lifestyles for adults over the age of 40.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.309-332
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• 2016

This research attempts to calculate the vertical equity of National Health Insurance Contribution of locally provided policy holders by abilities to pay. Also, this longitudinal study examined the influence of abilities to pay and demographic characteristics on the health insurance premium. Using data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study, this study followed the self-employed households who continued to participate in the survey from 2011 to 2015. Kakwani's index of progressivity was measured as a measure of vertical equity and panel regression analysis was conducted by STATA program. The results of this research are as follows. First, from 2011 to 2015, the values of kakwani's index were negative according to composite income, which meant some levels of regressiveness of contribution. Secondly, panel regression analysis showed that the lowest household of composite income had a significantly negative effect on premiums, which also meant regressiveness. Based on the results, the author suggested political discussions on reorganizing the system of imposing the National Health Insurance contribution.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.115-126
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• 2015

Objectives : This research was performed to investigate the characteristics and determination factors of health care policy satisfaction and welfare recognition for health insurance & health care financing. Methods : The utilized data were 4,174 cases who responded to a welfare recognition survey in the 8th wave of the Korea Welfare Panel Study (2013). The statistical methodology used in this study is the multiple regression model. Results : The significant affecting factors of health care policy satisfaction were age, education, household income, welfare attitudes, and health status. Medical utilization & private medical insurance were not related to health care policy satisfaction. The affecting factors of health insurance reinforcement were age, health status, welfare attitudes. The affecting factors of health care financing expansion were age, economic activity type, medical utilization, welfare attitudes. The affecting factors of welfare attitudes were age, economic activity type, household income, health insurance, and health status. Conclusions : Health care policy satisfaction, health insurance reinforcement, and health care financing expansion were all affected by age and welfare attitude; but this was not the case for private health insurance. This study recommended that the Korean government provide active planning for reinforcement of health insurance and publicity of the health care system in order to accord with the prospects of people.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.51-59
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• 2019

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to estimate the mediating effect of subjective unmet healthcare needs on poor health. The mediating effect of unmet needs on health outcomes was estimated. Methods: Cross-sectional research method was used to analyze Korea Health Panel data from 2011 to 2015, investigating the mediating effect for each annual dataset and lagged dependent variables. Results: The magnitude of the effect of low income on poor health and the mediating effect of unmet needs were estimated using age, sex, education level, employment status, healthcare insurance status, disability, and chronic disease as control variables and self-rated health as the dependent variable. The mediating effect of unmet needs due to financial reasons was between 14.7% to 32.9% of the total marginal effect, and 7.2% to 18.7% in lagged model. Conclusions: The fixed-effect logit model demonstrated that the existence of unmet needs raised the likelihood of poor self-rated health. However, only a small proportion of the effects of low income on health was mediated by unmet needs, and the results varied annually. Further studies are necessary to search for ways to explain the varying results in the Korea Health Panel data, as well as to consider a time series analysis of the mediating effect. The results of this study present the clear implication that even though it is crucial to address the unmet needs, but it is not enough to tackle the income related health inequalities.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.61-86
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• 2007

This study investigated the health outcomes of the aged male workers who retired before 2003, using the Korean Labor and Income Panel Study data. Empirical study shows that the subjective and objective health conditions of the retiree are worse than the non-retired. And the random-effect panel probit analyses got the results that the effects of retirement on health are different by the retirement reason and the subjective health conditions.