The Demand for Health Insurance and Use of Medical Services in Colombia: Differences Between Workers and the Self-Employed Workers

This paper analyzes the effect of individual health status on the probability of having health insurance and using health services. From the Colombian Living Standard Survey (1997, 2003), we found that the probability of having health insurance if you are self-employed increases either with the self report of a good health status (cream skimming) or the incidence of a chronic illness (self-selection). However, we do not observe those patterns on the group of self-employed workers. Finally, we found, as the research in the field suggests, that the use of health services increases with the health insurance status.