Examining the Delivery Care Cost and Affordability of Pregnancy and Childbirth across Wealth Profiles of Indian Women

Pratibha Saini, Department Of Management, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Bangalore
Angan Sengupta, Assistant Professor, Institute of Health Management Research, Bangalore

The study examines the expenses of childbirth in India, with a particular emphasis on how affordable it is in various wealth quantiles and geographical areas. Though there are improvements in maternal health outcomes, still notable differences because in socioeconomic factors like education and poverty affect access to care. The study uses data on delivery related costs and selected socioeconomic variables alongside wealth quantile index from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS–5) (2019-21). The research proposes to use both univariate and multivariate methods to investigate how out-of-pocket expenses affect Indian healthcare facility consumption. Furthermore, quantile regression is employed to understand how change in different quantiles changes the affordable cost. The study illustrates the financial obstacles that impede access to maternal healthcare and provides guidance to policymakers on how to encourage more equitable access to healthcare.

Keywords: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, Population Policies, Population and Development

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