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Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on health insurance in southeastern Brazil

an interrupted time series analysis

Authors

Keywords:

quasi-experimental models, causal inference, coronavirus

Abstract

Interrupted time series analysis is the quasi-experimental approach to evaluating the effects of discrete interventions on longitudinal data. Thus, a time series of a given outcome of interest is used to establish an underlying trend, which is "interrupted" by an intervention at a known point in time. The hypothetical scenario in which the intervention did not occur and the trend continues unchanged is referred to as the 'counterfactual'. This counterfactual scenario provides a comparison for evaluating the impact of the intervention by examining any changes that occur in the post-intervention period. In this sense, the aim of this work is to analyze the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on health insurance contracting in the Southeast region of Brazil by means of interrupted series analysis. The data used refers to the number of health insurance beneficiaries in the southeast region from the first quarter of 2000 to the first quarter of 2023 (93 observations), from the National Supplementary Health Agency. Based on the time series analysis, a quadratic model was fitted for the period before the treatment (COVID-19) and after the treatment. Based on the fits of these models, it was possible to observe that the number of health insurance beneficiaries in the southeast was falling, but the intervention may have caused a more pronounced reduction, with an average of 10,000 fewer beneficiaries than predicted without the intervention.

Author Biographies

Leonardo Biazoli, Federal University of Alfenas

Professor of the Actuarial Sciences course at the Federal University of Alfenas (UNIFAL-MG).
PhD student in Statistics and Agricultural Experimentation at the Federal University of Lavras
(UFLA). leonardo.biazoli@unifal-mg.edu.br, http://lattes.cnpq.br/6511546678544116.

Izabela Regina Cardoso de Oliveira, Federal University of Lavras

Professor at the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA). 
She has a PhD in Statistics and Agricultural Experimentation from the "Luiz de Queiroz"
School of Agriculture, ESALQ/USP, in a double degree with Universiteit Hasselt, Belgium.
He has a master's degree in Statistics and Agricultural Experimentation (2010) and a Bachelor's
degree in Administration (2008) from the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA).

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Published

15-03-2024

Versions

How to Cite

Biazoli, L., & Oliveira, I. R. C. de. (2024). Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on health insurance in southeastern Brazil: an interrupted time series analysis. Sigmae, 13(1), 45–50. Retrieved from https://publicacoes.unifal-mg.edu.br/revistas/index.php/sigmae/article/view/2263