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INTERNATIONAL RESEARCHER STUDIES HEALTH CARE ISSUES AT NEW MEXICO STATE UNIVERSITY
US Fed News
February 8, 2012 Wednesday 6:46 PM EST
LAS CRUCES, N.M., Feb. 8 -- New Mexico State University issued the
following news release:
Although the health care system in the U.S. may be imperfect, an
international researcher is collaborating with colleagues at New
Mexico State University to study what practices are successful in
order to help cure health care woes in her native Armenia.
Associate Professor Tamara Tonoyan has conducted research and
participated in conferences in Armenia, Austria, Belgium, England,
Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Russia and in the U.S. at the Woodrow
Wilson International Center in Washington, D.C., among other places.
Tonoyan's current research project is titled "Health care reform
in Armenia: Finding ways to overcome challenges." The international
researcher is working under a fellowship from the Carnegie Corporation
of New York and her research aims at exploring ways to overcome
problems in Armenia's health care system by analyzing the best
practices of developed countries.
One of the ways Tonoyan analyzes health care systems is by looking
at health services affordability. According to her research, the
utilization of health care services is low in Armenia, despite the
sufficient number of health care facilities and medical workforce.
Demand for medical services in Armenia is four times less than supply.
Many do not use the system because they do not have health insurance
and cannot afford to pay for services out of pocket.
Utilization is low even for the 23 percent of Armenians who qualify
for the government health care program "Basic Benefits Package,"
or BBP. Only 65 percent of those eligible for BBP use healthcare
services. This is in part because the government sets payment at
rates that may not cover providers' expenditures. As a result, BBP
participants are pressured to give additional informal payments in
exchange for health services.
"BBP is not based on real costs of services and thus contributes to
unofficial or illicit payments," Tonoyan said. "Moreover, all services
that are not included in BBP must be paid directly by the patient."
This is not a problem unique to Armenia. Tonoyan stated that while
informal payments in Armenia may exceed 45 percent of the total
health care resources, the rate is similar in the neighboring country
of Georgia at 35-40 percent and is nearly double in Azerbaijan at
84 percent.
"In these conditions, many Armenians prefer the ostrich method,"
Tonoyan said. "It is better to not know about our diseases than to
know and not be able to treat them because of lack of access to health
care and especially medication."
In the U.S., the problem of drug affordability has been highlighted by
the Medicare participant's plight of the "donut hole" or coverage gap
many experience when their Medicare Part D prescription benefits run
out. Until recently, many Americans were left paying the full cost of
prescription medications once Medicare paid out $2,840. The Affordable
Health Care Act now extends a 50 percent discount on brand-name
prescription medications when participants reach the "donut hole."
Tonoyan hopes that by researching the health systems of developed
countries with the help of NMSU colleagues, she can find strategies
to make the health care in Armenia more responsive to the needs of
the poor. She is also studying ways to reduce unnecessary medical
costs and introduce effective policies and programs.
Toward that end, Tonoyan is working not only with NMSU researchers and
professors in the College of Health and Social Services, but also with
professors in the College of Business and the College of Education.
"I truly believe that increasing collaboration with U.S. colleagues,
as well as gradual adoption of the most accessible procedures and
technologies will be very fruitful," Tonoyan said. "This initiative
gives me a chance to share my experiences, to compare my approach with
the approaches of my U.S. colleagues and develop a new perspective."
US Fed News
February 8, 2012 Wednesday 6:46 PM EST
LAS CRUCES, N.M., Feb. 8 -- New Mexico State University issued the
following news release:
Although the health care system in the U.S. may be imperfect, an
international researcher is collaborating with colleagues at New
Mexico State University to study what practices are successful in
order to help cure health care woes in her native Armenia.
Associate Professor Tamara Tonoyan has conducted research and
participated in conferences in Armenia, Austria, Belgium, England,
Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Russia and in the U.S. at the Woodrow
Wilson International Center in Washington, D.C., among other places.
Tonoyan's current research project is titled "Health care reform
in Armenia: Finding ways to overcome challenges." The international
researcher is working under a fellowship from the Carnegie Corporation
of New York and her research aims at exploring ways to overcome
problems in Armenia's health care system by analyzing the best
practices of developed countries.
One of the ways Tonoyan analyzes health care systems is by looking
at health services affordability. According to her research, the
utilization of health care services is low in Armenia, despite the
sufficient number of health care facilities and medical workforce.
Demand for medical services in Armenia is four times less than supply.
Many do not use the system because they do not have health insurance
and cannot afford to pay for services out of pocket.
Utilization is low even for the 23 percent of Armenians who qualify
for the government health care program "Basic Benefits Package,"
or BBP. Only 65 percent of those eligible for BBP use healthcare
services. This is in part because the government sets payment at
rates that may not cover providers' expenditures. As a result, BBP
participants are pressured to give additional informal payments in
exchange for health services.
"BBP is not based on real costs of services and thus contributes to
unofficial or illicit payments," Tonoyan said. "Moreover, all services
that are not included in BBP must be paid directly by the patient."
This is not a problem unique to Armenia. Tonoyan stated that while
informal payments in Armenia may exceed 45 percent of the total
health care resources, the rate is similar in the neighboring country
of Georgia at 35-40 percent and is nearly double in Azerbaijan at
84 percent.
"In these conditions, many Armenians prefer the ostrich method,"
Tonoyan said. "It is better to not know about our diseases than to
know and not be able to treat them because of lack of access to health
care and especially medication."
In the U.S., the problem of drug affordability has been highlighted by
the Medicare participant's plight of the "donut hole" or coverage gap
many experience when their Medicare Part D prescription benefits run
out. Until recently, many Americans were left paying the full cost of
prescription medications once Medicare paid out $2,840. The Affordable
Health Care Act now extends a 50 percent discount on brand-name
prescription medications when participants reach the "donut hole."
Tonoyan hopes that by researching the health systems of developed
countries with the help of NMSU colleagues, she can find strategies
to make the health care in Armenia more responsive to the needs of
the poor. She is also studying ways to reduce unnecessary medical
costs and introduce effective policies and programs.
Toward that end, Tonoyan is working not only with NMSU researchers and
professors in the College of Health and Social Services, but also with
professors in the College of Business and the College of Education.
"I truly believe that increasing collaboration with U.S. colleagues,
as well as gradual adoption of the most accessible procedures and
technologies will be very fruitful," Tonoyan said. "This initiative
gives me a chance to share my experiences, to compare my approach with
the approaches of my U.S. colleagues and develop a new perspective."