title: Health care reform in the former Soviet Union: beyond the transition.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess accessibility and affordability of health care in eight countries of the former Soviet Union.
  
  
  METHODS
  Primary data collection conducted in 2010 in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional household survey using multistage stratified random sampling.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were collected using standardized questionnaires with subjects aged 18+ on demographic, socioeconomic, and health care access characteristics. Descriptive and multivariate regression analyses were used.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Almost half of respondents who had a health problem in the previous month which they viewed as needing care had not sought care. Respondents significantly less likely to seek care included those living in Armenia, Georgia, or Ukraine, in rural areas, aged 35-49, with a poor household economic situation, and high alcohol consumption. Cost was most often cited as the reason for not seeking health care. Most respondents who did obtain care made out-of-pocket payments, with median amounts varying from $13 in Belarus to $100 in Azerbaijan.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Access to health care and within-country inequalities appear to have improved over the past decade. However, considerable problems remain, including out-of-pocket payments and unaffordability despite efforts to improve financial protection.
authors.affiliation: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Public Health and Policy, 15-17 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SH, UK. dina.balabanova@lshtm.ac.uk
authors.forename: Dina
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Balabanova
authors.forename: Bayard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.forename: Erica
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Richardson
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Haerpfer
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: McKee
mesh_terms: D001136:Armenia; D001382:Azerbaijan; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005846:Georgia (Republic); D017048:Health Care Costs; D018166:Health Care Reform / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D007623:Kazakhstan; D008966:Moldova; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002094:Republic of Belarus; D012426:Russia; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014455:Ukraine
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