The Influence Of Intergenerational Support On The Utilization Of Medical Services For The Elderly

Medical service utilization refers to people going to medical institutions for preventive health care,examination and diagnosis,clinical treatment and other behaviors after generating medical service demand.Medical expenditure is a quantitative expression of the quality and quantity of individual medical service utilization.According to the 2018 survey data of the China Health Care Association,a large part of the elderly in my country take passive treatment for reasons such as unattended and financial concerns after illness,which causes great harm to their health.How to improve the medical payment conditions of the elderly in my country,increase the utilization rate of medical services,and improve their negative treatment conditions have become important issues that need to be resolved urgently.Intergenerational support refers to the economic reciprocity between parents and children of the two generations in the family,daily care and visits,and emotional exchanges.It can be divided into intergenerational economic support and intergenerational non-economic support.It is an important source of old-age security in contemporary China.When the elderly give or receive intergenerational support,the health status and income level of the elderly will change and affect the medical expenditure of the elderly.Therefore,it is of important practical significance to study the impact of intergenerational support on the utilization of medical services for the elderly.This paper uses the 2015 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study(CHARLS)to study the impact of intergenerational support between the elderly and their children on the utilization of medical services for the elderly.Medical expenditure is a quantitative expression of the quality and quantity of individual medical service utilization.Therefore,medical expenditure should be taken as an important measurement indicator in the study of elderly medical service utilization.Based on age,this paper divides the sample into the young and the old.Under the guidance of the Andersen medical service utilization model,a Heckman sample selection model is established for the sample data to discuss the impact of family intergenerational support on the medical expenditure behavior of the elderly The impact of research on outpatient medical expenditures and hospitalized medical expenditures of urban and rural younger aged and senior aged.Based on the empirical analysis of intergenerational support and the utilization of medical services for the elderly,this article mainly draws the following conclusions:(l)Children’sfinancial support to their parents can significantly increase the outpatient expenditure of the urban and rural younger aged and senior aged,and the economic support given by children has a significantly higher effect on the medical expenditure of the rural elderly than in urban areas.(2)Children’s care for the elderly in rural areas will reduce the outpatient expenditure of senior aged,reflecting that children’s daily care of senior aged parents has a promoting effect on the health of the senior aged,and also shows the degree of dependence of the senior aged in rural my country on family support Higher.(3)Parents’ intergenerational support for their children does not affect the elderly’s use of outpatient services.(4)The hospitalization expenses of the younger aged accompanied by grandchildren have been significantly reduced,indicating that taking care of their grandchildren will not adversely affect the health of younger aged.On the contrary,the younger aged elderly accompanied by grandchildren are more physically and mentally happy and will reduce the use of in-patient medical services,but the impact on the senior aged is not significant.(5)The financial support of the senior aged for their children does not squeeze out their own medical expenditures.It can be considered that the demand for medical services of the senior aged y is rigid.In addition,the higher the level of education,the more outpatient expenditures for the rural elderly will increase,and there is no obvious age difference;the lower-age elderly with poorer self-assessment health and higher social participation will spend more on medical treatment;medical insurance will also promote the elderly People actively seek medical attention.Based on this,this article puts forward several policy recommendations:establish a special tax deduction system for children to pay for their parents’ medical expenses;actively advocate for the elderly to take care of their grandchildren and their children to support their parents;increase the supply of medical and health resources,and popularize medical insurance for the elderly in urban and rural areas;Extensive establishment of activity rooms for urban and rural residents to promote social interactions among the elderly;the elderly establish correct health precaution awareness,and the government and communities intensify health education and publicity.