Research on the Awareness of Basic Medical Insurance Policies Among Insured Residents in Ethnic Minority Areas of China

Objective To investigate the current status of insured residents' awareness of basic medical insurance policies and its influencing factors, reveal the correlation between awareness and insurance participation stability, and provide empirical references for optimizing policy publicity, curbing insurance withdrawal, and consolidating a long-term insurance participation mechanism. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1,173 insured residents from 14 prefecture-level cities in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region between July and September 2023 using multi-stage random sampling. Descriptive statistics, univariate analysis (t-test/ANOVA), and linear regression models were applied to systematically analyze the impacts of demographic characteristics and policy information channels on awareness levels. Results The overall awareness of medical insurance policies was low, with only 4.0% of residents reporting "very high awareness". Specifically, awareness rates of procurement policies (7.7%) and dual-channel policies (3.7%) were extremely low. Community medical insurance workstations (50.9%) served as the core communication channel, while television, the internet, and leaflets were important supplementary channels. Linear regression analysis showed that education level (high school/vocational school or above: β = 0.253–0.307, P < 0.01), agricultural employment status (β=-0.252, P < 0.001), and obtaining policy information through community medical insurance workstations (β = 0.177, P < 0.001), the internet (β = 0.206, P < 0.001), and leaflets (β = 0.209, P < 0.001) significantly improved awareness. In contrast, obtaining information through relatives and friends had a negative impact (β=-0.200, P < 0.001). Conclusion Insured residents' awareness of medical insurance policies is generally low, with weak understanding of specific provisions. Education level, employment status, and information channels are key influencing factors.