The importance of assessing out-of-pocket payments when the financing of antiretroviral therapy is transitioned to domestic funding: findings from Vietnam.

Objective: To assess out-of-pocket payments and catastrophic health expenditures among antiretroviral therapy (ART) patients in Vietnam, and to model catastrophic payments under different copayment scenarios when the primary financing of ART changes to social health insurance.

Methods: Cross-sectional facility-based survey of 843 patients at 42 health facilities representative of 87% of ART patients in 2015.

Results: Because of donor and government funding, no payments were made for antiretroviral drugs.