The launch of Seguro Popular (SP) in the early 200s has been one of the highlights of Mexican health reform during this century. Essentially a voluntary health insurance program, SP aimed to expand health insurance coverage to the uninsured population, provide financial protection, and improve access to care.

Numerous research studies have analyzed the impact of the program on different outcomes and sectors of Mexico’s population. However, most of these have focused on the short term, and little is known about the effects of SP on the population of older Mexican adults (OMAs) with chronic conditions. By using longitudinal data from the 2001 and 2012 waves of the Mexican Health and Aging Study, this study analyzed the medium-term impact of SP on health care utilization and out-of-pocket expenditures among OMAs with diabetes and/or hypertension.

The empirical strategy included the implementation of several difference-in-differences fixed and random-effects regression models. Mainly logistic, multilevel logistic, and propensity score matching models.

Findings suggest that OMAs who were enrolled in SP were associated with higher utilization rates and lower out-of-pocket expenditures compared to those who were uninsured. This has important policy implications given the great vulnerability of OMAs, the high prevalence of chronic diseases among this population, and Mexico’s current demographic transition. In addition, current developments with regards to Mexico’s new federal government’s recent proposal to dismantle SP has further policy implications, as several studies, including this one, have documented positive impacts of the program on Mexico’s population.