Willingness To Pay for Future National Health Insurance Scheme: A Study Among Health Sector Employees in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Abstract

Introduction:      

The National Health Insurance (NHI), which utilizes the concept of social health insurance, is a long-term strategy for addressing healthcare costs and rising household out-of-pocket expenditures. This study aimed to determine the willingness to pay (WTP) for NHI among health sector employees and the factors that affect their WTP.

Methods;              

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 122 health sector employees of three government health institutions in Kuala Lumpur. A self-administered questionnaire (Cronbach’s alpha 0.78) using the Contingent Valuation Method technique was used to estimate the value of WTP.

Results:                 

The response rate was 91.8%. Most respondents (n = 96, 85.7%) were willing to pay for NHI. The mean and median of NHI monthly premiums were RM72.00 (SD RM77.92) and RM50.00 (IQR RM70.00) or 1.94% (SD1.92%) and 1.00% (IQR 1.88%) of respondents’ monthly income. Age (X²=12.088, p=0.001), household size (X²= 5.737, p= 0.017), and total monthly income of respondents (X²=4.978, p= 0.026) were significant in influencing their WTP for NHI.

Conclusions:      

In conclusion the future NHI scheme will be supported by the majority of health sector employees if the government implements it in Malaysia, based on a sample of 122 employees. Most were willing to pay RM72.00 or 1.94% per month of their total monthly income for NHI. Age, household size, and monthly income were the key factors to consider in planning a successful and sustainable NHI.