A preliminary assessment of financial stability, efficiency, health systems and health outcomes using performance-based contracts in Belize

Abstract

Over the last 10 years, Belize has implemented a National Health Insurance (NHI) program that uses performance-based contracts with both public and private facilities to improve financial sustainability, efficiency and service provision. Data were collected at the facility, district and national levels in order to assess trends in financial sustainability, efficiency payments, year-end bonuses and health system and health outcomes. A difference-in-difference approach was used to assess the difference in technical efficiency between private and public facilities. The results show that per capita spending on services provided by the NHI program has decreased over the period 2006–2009 from BZ$177 to BZ$136. The private sector has achieved higher levels of technical efficiency, but lower percentages of efficiency and year-end bonus payments. Districts with contracts through the NHI program showed greater improvements in facility births, nurse density, reducing maternal mortality, diabetes deaths and morbidity from bronchitis, emphysema and asthma than districts without contracts over the period 2006–2010. This preliminary assessment of Belize's pay-for-performance system provides some positive results, however further research is needed to use the lessons learned from Belize to implement similar reforms in other systems.

Keywords:

• Belize
• pay for performance
• efficiency
• financing
• health systems

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank individuals from the National Health Insurance Program and the Ministry of Health in Belize who described the programme and provided assistance in gathering all relevant data for the analysis. The authors would also like to thank Gary Gaumer who provided helpful comments and advice.