Tk 46,426 average cost per month in Bangladesh, says BIDS study
Kidney patients in Bangladesh have to bear an average monthly expense of Tk 46,426, with costs ranging between Tk 6,690 and Tk 2,10,000, according to a study by Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS).
The study revealed that 92 percent of families with kidney patients faced distress trying to finance dialysis treatment in Bangladesh.
While out-of-pocket expenditure is higher for rich households, the cost burden is greater for poorer households, according to the study titled, "Out-of-pocket Cost of Kidney Dialysis in Bangladesh", presented at a hotel in the capital's Gulshan yesterday.
Abdur Razzak Sarkar, research fellow of BIDS, presented the study's findings.
He said a kidney patient has to bear an annual cost of Tk 80,280 to 25,20,000 for dialysis.
The study focused on finding out and estimating the health and financial burden of kidney dialysis patients in the country.
It highlighted that in Bangladesh, 8 lakh kidney failure patients require dialysis, but only 30,000 are able to receive it due to a lack of availability and financial limitations.
Abdur Razzak said chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major cause of disability and death globally.
He said, "Kidney dialysis facilities in private hospitals should be subsidised so that resource-poor households can also access the service. Thus, it will ensure equity in receiving dialysis."
A total of 477 hospitalised patients from public, private, and NGO healthcare facilities participated in this cross-sectional hospital-based study with face-to-face interviews conducted between November 1 and December 31 last year.
The study found that dialysis fees (35.3 percent) and medication costs (23 percent) are the largest contributors to total treatment expenses.
In total, medical costs account for 78.79 percent of the total expenditure for kidney dialysis patients.
The study also revealed that around 90 percent of the households faced catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) to finance dialysis treatment, and about 19.5 percent of the patients received fewer dialysis than the recommended number. The incidence of taking fewer dialysis than recommended was highest (30 percent) among the poorest households.
The high cost of dialysis was the most prevalent reason for those receiving fewer dialysis treatments than they need, added the study.
Abdur Razzak urged the government to allocate a budget to protect patients from financially catastrophic shocks.
"Kidney patients requiring dialysis should be included in a safety net programme so that financing the treatment would be easier," he said.
Dialysis treatment should be brought under an insurance mechanism to make it more affordable, he also said.
State-owned pharmaceuticals should produce more of the drugs that are currently expensive, to reduce their cost, he added.