Preferred Mode of Payments for Community Based Health Care Financing Scheme among Households in Osun State, Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

Community Based Health Care Financing(CBHF) schemes are usually organized in such a manner as to encourage community participation whereby community members have a stake in the election of scheme managers and also in the oversight of the scheme. The local communities play a great role in the determination of benefit packages in a CBHF based on needs, priorities and community member's ability to pay. The objectives of this study are to determine the preferred mode(s) of payment for community based health care financing scheme in rural and urban areas and to determine the premium that rural and urban households are willing to pay for community based health care financing scheme in the study areas. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional  study  among 450 rural households and an equal number in urban households in Osun State using multistage sampling method. Research instruments were  semi structured interviewer administered questionnaires.  Data were analysed using STATA 10 software.  The findings from this research showed that  for the use of cash, urban households     were willing to pay ?1798.90k per year while rural ones were willing to pay ? 721.70k. For payment in kinds, urban households were willing to pay ?1387.40k against ? 1910.60k by rural households per year. . The preffered mode of payment in  rural  households was payment in kinds while urban households preferred the use of cash.  To design a feasible and attainable community based health care financing scheme for the people of Osun State government should create modalities that will ensure the use of payment methods/ medium that can eliminate the constraint implied by income in accessing health care.

Keywords: mode of payments, CBHF, households, Osun State, Nigeria