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The Burden of Health-Related Out-of-Pocket Cancer Costs in Canada: A Case-Control Study Using Linked Data
| Content Provider | MDPI |
|---|---|
| Author | Essue, Beverley M. de Oliveira, Claire Bushnik, Tracey Fung, Sharon Hwee, Jeremiah Sun, Zhuolu Navas, Elba Gomez Yong, Jean Hai Ein Garner, Rochelle |
| Copyright Year | 2022 |
| Abstract | Background: The burden of out-of-pocket costs among cancer patients/survivors in Canada is not well understood. The objective of this study was to examine the health-related out-of-pocket cost burden experienced by households with a cancer patient/survivor compared to those without, examine the components of health-related costs and determine who experiences a greater burden. Data and methods: This study used a data linkage between the Survey of Household Spending and the Canadian Cancer Registry to identify households with a cancer patient/survivor (cases) and those without (controls). The out-of-pocket burden (out-of-pocket costs measured relative to household income) and mean costs were described and regression analyses examined the characteristics associated with the household out-of-pocket burden and annual out-of-pocket costs. Results: The health-related out-of-pocket cost burden and annual costs measured in households with a cancer patient/survivor were 3.08% (95% CI: 2.55–3.62%) and CAD 1600 (95% CI: 1456–1759), respectively, compared to a burden of 2.84% (95% CI: 2.31–3.38) and annual costs of CAD 1511 (95% CI: 1377–1659) measured in control households, respectively. Households with a colorectal cancer patient/survivor had a significantly higher out-of-pocket burden compared to controls (mean difference: 1.0%, 95% CI: 0.18, 0.46). Among both cases and controls, the lowest income quintile households experienced the highest health-related out-of-pocket cost burden. Interpretation: Within a universal health care system, it is still relevant to monitor health-related out-of-pocket spending that is not covered by existing insurance mechanisms; however, this is not routinely assessed in Canada. We demonstrate the feasibility of measuring such costs in households with a cancer patient/survivor using routinely collected data. While the burden and annual health-related out-of-pocket costs of households with a cancer patient/survivor were not significantly higher than control households in this study, the routine measurement of out-of-pocket costs in Canada could be systemized, providing a novel, system-level, equity-informed performance indicator, which is relevant for monitoring inequities in the burden of out-of-pocket costs. |
| Ending Page | 4557 |
| Page Count | 17 |
| Starting Page | 4541 |
| e-ISSN | 17187729 |
| DOI | 10.3390/curroncol29070359 |
| Journal | Current Oncology |
| Issue Number | 7 |
| Volume Number | 29 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | MDPI |
| Publisher Date | 2022-06-27 |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Subject Keyword | Current Oncology Oncology Womens Studies Health-related Out-of-pocket Cost Burden Out-of-pocket Costs Cancer Survey Data Cancer Registry Data Equity |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
