Economic Dimensions of Health Protection under Sehat Sahulat Program: A Qualitative Assessment of Urban and Rural Households in Pakistan

The study examines the economic costs and advantages of the Sehat Sahulat Program (SSP) in Pakistanbased on the qualitative evidence collected in the urban and rural settings. SSP is a landmark healthinsurance program that would improve the proportionality of healthcare coverage and minimize the outof-pocket costs. Nevertheless, the differences in implementation and use still define its efficacy. Thispaper relied upon in-depth interviews and thematic analysis to determine how households (particularlythose in the lower-income bracket) perceive the accessibility, affordability, and long-term sustainabilityof the program. The results are sophisticated in terms of benefits and barriers. On the one hand, SSPsaved a lot of direct treatment expenses on covered diseases and gave vulnerable groups a feeling offinancial security. Structural and systematic factors, including low awareness, insufficient coverage ofhospitals in rural areas, administrative inefficiency, and unfamiliar costs, restrained the potential of theprogram. Participants in the urban areas reported that they utilized it more due to the increasedconcentration of empanelled hospitals, whereas those in the rural areas complained about the cost oftraveling, late reimbursements, and lack of equity. The study highlights the need to fill these gaps toensure that SSP is more inclusive and influential. The policy implications indicate the necessity of betterawareness campaigns, increased monitoring of the practices in the private hospitals, increased coveragein rural areas, and the transparency of the reimbursement system. This study adds to the literature onhealth economics and social protection in Pakistan by qualitatively informing the reader about livedexperiences, providing lessons to other low- and middle-income countries that may be implementingsimilar schemes.