About half of the neediest families with children and young people under 15 do not buy all the medicines they need, indicating a major barrier to accessing care, according to a national survey.
The conclusion is contained in the study “Children’s Access to Health Care”, carried out by two researchers from the Faculty of Economics and Management of the University of Nova de Lisboa (Nova SBE) Pedro Pita Barros and Carolina Santos, who, in the first version published in December, indicated that poverty prevents many families from seek advice or contact emergency services.
The final version of the report released shows that in a country where minors are exempt from paying subscription fees, one of the main financial barriers to accessing healthcare is the cost of medicines.
Analyzing households with children and youth under the age of 15, the researchers conclude that 50.7% of families in a situation of high economic need (category E) in 2022 did not purchase all the necessary medications.
This percentage is almost three times higher compared to households belonging to the previous group (17.11%) and 12 times higher compared to households with less economic hardship (4.22%).
“Following a decline in this rate between 2015 and 2019/2020, the likelihood of purchasing not all medicines has since increased, especially in the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups (D and E),” the researchers compare, citing that “the economic situation In recent years, high inflation has exacerbated financial barriers to accessing healthcare.”
Another indicator observed is the replacement of brand-name drugs with generic drugs, and at this level differences are also identified related to the socio-economic status of families.
Overall, generics have been favored in recent years, with the likelihood of households choosing generics increasing by about 36% in just two years, from 23.26% in 2020 to 32.31% in 2022.
However, there is a very significant difference between the most and least disadvantaged households, and while only 7.4% of least disadvantaged households choose generics, 66.6% of the most disadvantaged households make this choice.
Following findings in December that showed an increase in the percentage of families not seeking care, the most recent version of the report highlights that the likelihood of not going to a consultation or emergency department due to lack of money has more than tripled in just one year, from 2.14% to 7.35%.
Families in situations of high economic need have a much higher percentage than average: two in every 10 avoid seeing a doctor for this reason.
Without user fees, economic barriers to accessing consultations and emergencies include transportation costs or costs associated with purchasing medications, for example, but researchers also point to non-financial barriers to accessing healthcare.
Regarding family doctors, the report shows that the majority of households had an assigned doctor (85.84% among families with children under 15 years of age and 82.38% among other families).
However, there are areas of the country with less coverage, and the lowest rates are recorded in Greater Lisbon, where only 79.09% of families with children under 15 years of age and 65.27% of others had a family doctor.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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