North America - Number of people spending more than 25% of household consumption or income on out-of-pocket health care expenditure

Definition: Number of people spending more than 25% of household consumption or income on out-of-pocket health care expenditure

Source: World Health Organization and World Bank. 2019. Global Monitoring Report on Financial Protection in Health 2019.

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Development Relevance: Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is about ensuring that all people can access the health services they need – without facing financial hardship – is key to improving the well-being of a country’s population. UHC is also an investment in human capital and a foundational driver of inclusive and sustainable economic growth and development. UHC is a target associated with the Sustainable Development Goals (target 3.8), and it relates directly to Goal 3 (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages) and to Goal 1 (End poverty in all its forms everywhere).

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Out-of-pocket payments are those made by people at the time of getting any type of service (preventive, curative, rehabilitative, palliative or long-term care) provided by any type of provider. They include cost-sharing (the part not covered by a third party like an insurer) and informal payments, but they exclude insurance premiums. Out-of-pocket payments exclude any reimbursement by a third party, such as the government, a health insurance fund or a private insurance company. Out-of-pocket payments are defined as catastrophic at the 25% threshold when they represent 25% or more of total consumption or income.

Aggregation method: Sum

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Health Indicators

Sub-Topic: Universal Health Coverage