Equity of access to healthcare remains a major challenge. Families continue to face financial and non financial barriers to services. Lack of education has been shown to be a key risk factor for catastrophic health expenditure in many countries, including India. This study, published in PLOS ONE, assessed whether the Rajiv Aarogyasri health insurance program in Andhra Pradesh reduced inequality of access to hospital inpatient care among households with different levels of education.

The study found that, during the time of the Aarogyasri scheme implementation, inequalities in access to hospital care were substantially reduced but not eliminated across the education divide. Universal access to education and schemes such as Aarogyasri have the synergistic potential to achieve equity of access to healthcare.