Coping with Out-of-Pocket Health Expenditure in India: Evidence from NSS 71st Round

The present paper seeks to examine the incidence and socio-economic inequality in the utilisation of different sources of finance to cope up with out-of-pocket (OOP) health expenditure in rural and urban India. By employing National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO), 71st Round (2014) data, the authors found that among inpatient cases, about 60 and 50% households in rural and urban areas respectively rely upon distress sources such as borrowings, contributions from friends and relatives and sale of assets to finance OOP health expenditure. Socio-economically deprived sections in rural areas have a higher likelihood of using distress financing than in urban areas. Greater dependency on debt and sale of assets emphasises the need for a comprehensive health financing system in the country.