Health Policy Manag.  2022 Dec;32(4):389-399. 10.4332/KJHPA.2022.32.4.389.

The Impact of Long-term Care Insurance on Medical Utilization and Medical Cost in South Korea

• Kang HJ
• Jang S
• Jang S

• KMID: 2538419
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4332/KJHPA.2022.32.4.389

Abstract

Background
This study aimed to analyze changes in medical utilization and cost before and after long-term care (LTC) implementation.
Methods
We used the National Health Information Database from National Health Insurance Service. The participants were selected who had a new LTC grade (grade 1–5) for 2015. Medical utilization was analyzed before and after LTC implementation. Segmented regression analysis of interrupted time series was conducted to evaluate the overall effect of the LTC implementation on medical costs.
Results
The total number of participants was 41,726. A major reason for hospitalization in grade 1 was cerebrovascular diseases, and dementia was the top priority in grade 5. The proportion of hospitalization in grade 1 increased sharply before LTC implementation and then decreased. In grade 5, it increased before LTC implementation, but there was no significant difference after LTC implementation. As for medical cost, in grades 1 to 4, the total cost increased sharply before the LTC implementation, but thereafter, changes in level and trend tended to decrease statistically, and for grade 5, immediately after LTC implementation, the level change was decreasing, but thereafter, the trend change was increasing.
Conclusion
Long-term care grades showed different medical utilization and cost changes. Long-term care beneficiaries would improve their quality of life by adequately resolving their medical needs by their grades.

Keyword

Long-term care; Aged; Health care costs; Disease; Interrupted time series analysis