文章基本信息

标题：Did the Expansion of Insurance Coverage for Oral Health Reduce Self-reported Oral Health Inequalities in Korea? Results of Repeated Cross-Sectional Analysis, 2007–2015
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作者：Nam-Hee Kim ; Ichiro Kawachi
期刊名称：Journal of Epidemiology
印刷版ISSN：0917-5040
电子版ISSN：1349-9092
出版年度：2020
卷号：30
期号：12
页码：537-541
DOI：10.2188/jea.JE20190119
出版社：Japan Epidemiological Association
摘要：Background: In 2009, the South Korean government expanded universal health insurance to include oral health services. In the present study, we sought to examine whether improved access resulted in a reduction in income-based self-reported oral health inequalities. Methods: We analyzed repeated cross-sectional data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) waves IV through VI (2007–2015). We analyzed self-reported oral health status among 68,431 subjects. Changes in oral health inequalities across four income levels (low, middle-low, middle-high, and high) were assessed with the Slope Index of Inequality (SII) and the Relative Index of Inequality (RII). Results: The average oral health status of children and adolescents improved the most over the observation period. The absolute magnitude of oral health inequalities (measured by the SII) improved for most groups, with the notable exception of young male adults. By contrast, the ratio of poor oral health between high- and low-income groups (measured by the RII) changed little over time, indicating that relative inequalities remained resistant to change. Conclusions: The expansion of dental health insurance may not be sufficient to move the needle on self-reported oral health inequalities among adults.
关键词：health insurance;income;inequality;KNHANES;self-reported oral health