Medical care equity for older persons in Chile: The role of the insurance sector

Governments play a central role in the organization and financing of health services, and their actions in promoting equitable health care contribute to their legitimacy. Chile’s system of health insurance and health care has raised concerns about equity in the financing of this care. This research extends the analysis of equity to the question of access to care, with special emphasis on the heaviest users of medical care: i.e., those aged 65 and over. Data from the 1998 Chilean national CASEN survey show that there were substantial inequities both between and within public and private insurance in this respect. The persistence of inequities within public health insurance indicates that even when financial equity and efficiency are improved, additional attention must be given to barriers to obtaining medical care if inequities in access are to be reduced.