S1379
Interdisciplinary - Health economics & health services research
ESTRO 2026
delivery of radiotherapy and to limit financial toxicities. Material/Methods:
Census from 6 private institutions across Maharashtra, India were studied. The parameters noted were the number of patients who availed insurance policies or government schemes, cost of radiotherapy covered by them, the time required for their approval and sanctioning, the average delay by availing them, and the compliance to radiotherapy after receiving financial assistance. Patients were also analysed for the percentage of financial toxicity that was caused by radiotherapy. The data was tabulated and analysed. Results: Across the 6 institutions, 60% of the patients utilized insurance, 32% availed schemes, and the rest paid with their own money. The median amount covered by insurance and schemes was ₹ 202,400 (IQR ₹ 60,000 - ₹ 290,950), and ₹ 60,000 (IQR ₹ 24450.5 - ₹ 142539). The median difference in the cost of treatment for those using insurance as compared to those using schemes was ₹ 86390 [interquartile range (IQR) ₹ 18049.5 - ₹ 98791]. The lower prices for patients availing schemes matched the population and financial demographics for whom these were established. The median time to approval was 8 hours (IQR 6-72 hours) for insurance and 24 hours (IQR 6-72 hours). The main cause of delay of insurance approvals were queries related to the treatment modality, and improper identification and documents for patients who availed schemes. The median time for insurance amount to be credited to the institution was 45 days (IQR 32-63 days) and 70 days (IQR 60-127 days) for scheme funds. In all the participating institutes, the compliance to treatment starting was 100% upon utilization of the financial aids. Over 90% (IQR - 80% to 95%) of the patients responded that radiotherapy caused the least financial toxicity in their cancer treatment due to financial assistance.
Fig 2 - Cost covered by insurance vs scheme Conclusion: Insurance and schemes are vital monetary alternatives in ensuring compliance and adequate delivery of radiotherapy while reducing financial toxicities. Keywords: Scheme, Insurance, financial toxicity Digital Poster 465 Regional distribution of GES-covered radiotherapy in Chile (2018–2022) Gonzalo Ulloa 1 , Raul Aguilar-Barrientos 2,3 , Paula Reyes 1,3 , Bruno Nervi 1,3 , Pablo Munoz-Schuffenegger 1,3 1 Department of Hematology – Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile. 2 Institute of Public Health Policies (IPSUSS), Facultad de medicina y ciencias Universidad San Sebastián, Santiago, Chile. 3 Center for Cancer
Prevention and Control (CECAN), Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
Purpose/Objective: In Chile, the Explicit Health Guarantees (GES) law ensures financial coverage for 17 priority cancer types under the public insurance system (FONASA), which covers about 80% of the population. Radiotherapy (RT) delivery remains highly centralized in metropolitan areas, with peripheral regions depending on referral centres. Understanding these patterns is key to addressing inequities in access. This study characterised GES-covered RT between 2018 and 2022 by (1) classifying main tumour sites, (2) describing public–private contribution by region, and (3) analysing regional distribution and case-mix across the national RT network Material/Methods: A retrospective descriptive analysis was conducted using administrative FONASA data obtained through a public-information request. The dataset included all RT treatments billed under the GES programme between 2018 and 2022, encompassing only curative indications, as palliative radiotherapy is not covered under GES. Treatments were grouped by treating region and healthcare sector (public vs private). The study period corresponds to the most recent publicly available dataset, reflecting a structural limitation in the centralised and delayed reporting of national
Fig 1 - Utilization of financial assistance
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