Understanding health insurance coverage and its socio-demographic associations among women in Bangladesh: evidence from BDHS 2022

Background: Health insurance is vital for healthcare financing and aligns with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal agenda. Women of reproductive age face unique barriers to affordable care due to higher health risks and caregiving roles. This study aims to estimate the proportion of women with health insurance coverage (HIC) and its associated factors. Methods: We used data from the latest round of the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) of 2022. The number of women considered for analysis was 19987. Unadjusted odds ratio with their 95% confidence interval (CI) were reported. Results: The median (IQR) age of the women in the study was 32.0 (25.0-39.0) years. Only 0.3% of women reported having HIC. The odds of HIC increased significantly with having account with bank or other financial institution (UOR: 2.27; 95% CI: 1.36-3.79), both woman or their husbands having post-secondary education, belonging to richest family (UOR: 3.32; 95% CI: 1.45-7.60), and having adequate media exposure (UOR: 2.78; 95% CI: 1.41-5.47). Conclusions: The study highlights the need for higher education among both sexes and targeted strategies to reduce wealth-based disparities and use mass media to promote the uptake of HIC.