New Life Science Research Study Findings Recently Were Reported by F.X. Andoh-Adjei and Co-Researchers (Provider preference for payment method under a national health insurance scheme: A survey of health insurance-credentialed health care …)

2019 SEP 11 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Fresh data on Life Science Research are presented in a new report. According to news reporting out of Accra, Ghana, by NewsRx editors, research stated, “Ghana introduced capitation payment method in 2012 but was faced with resistance from provider groups and civil society organizations for its perceived negative effects on quality care delivery. This study seeks to explore the views of providers to understand their preferred payment method for the various types of services they provide in order to inform the discussion and negotiations during this period of reform.”

Financial support for this research came from NFP.

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research, “Findings will not only aid the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to improve the implementation arrangements but also provide useful inputs for other low and middle-income countries (LMICs) in their quest to reform their provider payment systems. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 200 credentialed health care providers’ in the three regions of Ghana on providers’ preference for payment method. We administered closed-ended questionnaires employing 5-point Likert scales for measurement of payment method preference. Descriptive and regression analysis were performed to examine healthcare providers’ background characteristics and their association with preferred payment method for primary care. In general, health care providers prefer the Ghana-Diagnosis-Related Grouping (G-DRG) payment method to fee-for-service and capitation payment methods. Result of bivariate analyses showed that healthcare providers’ preference for payment method for primary outpatient services differed significantly by their region of residence (p <0.001). The multinomial logic model showed that being a female (p=0.013) or healthcare provider in the Volta region (p=0.008) was significantly associated with health provider preference for G-DRG payment method relative to fee-for-service. Similarly, being a healthcare provider in the Volta region (p=0.026) or Medical Assistant (p=0.032) was significantly associated with capitation relative to fee-for-service payment method. We conclude that the most preferred payment method across all regions is the G-DRG. However, whereas providers in the Volta region are not willing to accept capitation as payment method, this was not the case in Ashanti and Central regions.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Capitation payment method as an option for primary care services in Ghana should, therefore, not be ruled out of the discussion.”

For more information on this research see: Provider preference for payment method under a national health insurance scheme: A survey of health insurance-credentialed health care providers in Ghana. Plos One, 2019;14(8):e0221195. (Public Library of Science - www.plos.org; Plos One - www.plosone.org)

Our news journalists report that additional information may be obtained by contacting F.X. Andoh-Adjei, National Health Insurance Authority, Accra, Ghana. Additional authors for this research include E. Nsiah-Boateng, F.A. Asante, K.V. Velden and E. Spaan.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0221195. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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