Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42366799›Full record

ArticleHealth policy and planning2026

Preference for supplementary voluntary health insurance and heterogeneity in China: a discrete choice experiment.

Lizheng Xu, Lei Si, Shunping Li, Jiaqi Yuan, Xu Si, Dan Zhang, Stephen Jan, Chaofan Li

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Health policy and planning, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Lizheng XuSchool of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, 44 Wenhuaxi Road, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
Lei SiSchool of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, New South Wales 2751, Australia.
Shunping LiDepartment of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, 44 Wenhuaxi Road, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
Jiaqi YuanDepartment of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, 44 Wenhuaxi Road, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
Xu SiDepartment of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, 44 Wenhuaxi Road, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
Dan ZhangInstitute for Hospital Management, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, 2279 Lishui Road, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
Stephen JanThe George Institute for Global Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, 55 Botany Street Randwick, Sydney, New South Wales 2031, Australia.
Chaofan LiDepartment of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, 44 Wenhuaxi Road, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.

Funding

Humanities and Social Science Fund of Ministry of Education of China 22YJCZH076National Natural Science Foundation of China 72204146Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation ZR2022QG018
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Understanding the population's preferences for health insurance plays an important role in optimizing insurance scheme design and improving enrollment rate. This study aims to quantitatively investigate preference for supplementary voluntary health insurance (SVHI) from a multi-site survey and examine its heterogeneity in China. A discrete choice experiment was conducted in Shandong, Henan, and Sichuan provinces using multi-stage stratified sampling method. Five SVHI attributes were identified: premium, benefit package, deductible, reimbursement rate, and reimbursement for preexisting conditions. Choice sets were generated using a D-efficient design, grouped into two blocks randomly assigned to respondents, with each set comprising two SVHI options and an opt-out. Data were collected via face-to-face computer-assisted interviews. Mixed logit models were used to estimate preference weights, willingness-to-pay (WTP), and attribute importance scores. Preference heterogeneity was analyzed by disease-related financial risk awareness, numeracy, and health insurance knowledge, demographic, socioeconomic, and health characteristics. Of the 1326 respondents who completed the questionnaire, 1254 were included in the analysis. Reimbursement rate was the most important attribute (34.26%), followed by premium (25.06%), benefit package (17.60%), deductible (17.50%), and reimbursement for preexisting conditions (5.58%). Overall, respondents expressed the highest WTP (USD 48.50) for improving the reimbursement rate from 50% to 90%, while they showed lowest WTP (USD 8.60) for decreasing deductible from USD 2777.78 to 1388.89. Heterogeneity analysis revealed stronger enrollment preferences among respondents with risk awareness, higher health insurance knowledge, higher numeracy, higher educational attainment, higher income, and those living in urban areas. In addition, higher levels of risk awareness, insurance knowledge, numeracy, income, and education were associated with increased WTP for SVHI attributes. Preference heterogeneity by risk awareness and insurance knowledge suggests need for targeted risk information communication and education campaign to promote SVHI uptake and diverse insurance design tailored to socioeconomic differences in preferences for attributes.

Indexed as

Choice BehaviorInsurance, HealthAdultChinaFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedSurveys and QuestionnairesChinadiscrete choice experimentheterogeneitypreferencesupplementary voluntary health insurance

Identifiers

PMID42366799
PMCPMC13548177

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.