Willingness-to-pay for community based health insurance by farming households: A case study of hygeia community health plan in Kwara State, Nigeria

Abstract

The mechanism of healthcare financing available to the poor especially the farming households has been a source of worry in Nigeria. In a bid to find solution to this problem, an alternative financing scheme that will cater for healthcare expenditure of vulnerable rural farming households has been proposed. This study therefore examined the willingness-to-pay for Community Based Health Insurance (Hygiea) Scheme by farming households in Kwara state, Nigeria. 175 farming households were proportionately selected and interviewed from Edu local government area of the state. The study employed the Contingent valuation and Ordinary least square methods to analyse the average amount households are willing to pay and the factors influencing their willingness to pay respectively. The result of the study revealed that the rural farming households were willing to pay an average of N2, 139.43 per person per year (1.1 USD per person per month). The age of the household head, farm size and household monthly income were found to significantly influence the maximum amount the farming households are willing to pay. The study therefore recommended that the government should create an enabling environment that would encourage the establishment and operation of private health insurance schemes in rural areas.