Healthcare costs are becoming more of a headache for many families and governments. In terms of healthcare financing, the world is in a transitional period that uses expensive technology in terms of medical materials. The reduction of the labor force cost expected from telemedicine or telehealth will take some time, as it requires changes of health professionals’ paradigms and habitudes. Unfortunately, the current health financing instruments, including the tax and health insurance systems, are unable to respond to the requirements of financing. Looking at the countries that have strong social protection systems that include health or medical schemes, out-of-pocket payments are still very important. The sick population of the United Kingdom spends 640 million US Dollars a month on health care through out-of-pocket payments; Sweden spends 164 million; and Germany spends 3.7 billion. For big countries that are still building universal healthcare systems, such as China, India, and the USA, out-of-pocket expenses are very important. In total, 12.4 billion US Dollars are spent in China, 3.7 billion in India, and 26.1 billion in the USA. Many countries have public schemes covering the poor, and the rich have health insurance with high ceilings. Therefore, we can assume that those with a low income are essentially concerned by the out-of-pocket payments. Unfortunately, they are the ones who need interventions to bring them to the middle-income level and who are at high risk of falling to the poverty level. Healthcare is among the core factors that cause poverty in many low-income populations around the world, including developed countries.
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