Acesso aos cuidados de saúde em Portugal no rescaldo da crise. Nem tudo é dinheiro?

• Autor(a) principal: Micaela Antunes
• Data de Publicação: 2020
• Outros Autores: Luís Moura Ramos, Óscar Lourenço, Carlota Quintal
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Cadernos de Saúde Pública
• Texto Completo: https://cadernos.ensp.fiocruz.br/ojs/index.php/csp/article/view/7242
• topic: Acesso aos Serviços de Saúde; Equidade no Acesso aos Serviços de Saúde; Fatores Socioeconômicos

Unmet healthcare needs have been used to assess access to healthcare. In scenarios of recession and financial constraints on public policies, it is important to identify which factors besides income can be used to mitigate barriers to access. This was the focus of our study on Portugal’s case in the wake of the crisis. We used 17,698 observations from the 5th National Health Survey (2014). We analyzed self-reported unmet needs for medical appointments and treatments, dental healthcare, and prescribed medications. We used a bivariate selection model, considering the fact that unmet needs could only be observed in the subsample of individuals that felt the need for healthcare. The risk of unmet needs for healthcare decreased in individuals with higher income and schooling levels and in the elderly and men. Exclusive coverage by the National Health Service increased the risk of unmet dental healthcare needs. The absence of a circle of close friends to whom one can ask for help and lack of trust in others increased the likelihood of unmet healthcare needs. Better health decreased the risk of unmet needs. While income is an important predictor of unmet needs, we found the impact of other factors such as gender, age, and education. Participation in informal groups reduced the likelihood of unmet needs. Individuals with more healthcare needs end up suffering additional risk.