The National Family Health Survey Reports for 2015-16 (NFHS-IV) and 2019-20 (NFHS-V) and the Expert Committee Tribal Health Report (GOI 2018) outline the unsatisfactory health performance and growing health vulnerabilities at the state level. Across social groups, STs, particularly in states like U.P. M.P. Bihar, and Jharkhand, face the highest burden. The spread of infection and illness, specifically during the second wave of the pandemic, was intense due to the overburdened and inadequate primary health care system in the tribal regions. Against this backdrop, the present study aims to assess the health vulnerabilities and coping strategies of the tribal populations in the aftermath of the Covid 19 Pandemic.
DATA AND METHODS
The paper analyses the unit-level data from the NFHS-IV and V to understand the health vulnerabilities of the tribal households. Further, the paper analyses the case study based on the Tharu Tribes' survey in Uttar Pradesh. Seventy-five households were surveyed using in-depth interviews and a semi-structured questionnaire to assess the impact of the Covid lockdown on the household health burden. Apart from the qualitative analysis, the survey data uses the binary logistic regression model to determine the factors causing vulnerabilities. The model analyses the relationship between out-of-pocket health expenditure and factors determining health status and outcomes in tribal households. The determinants considered are income status, nature of employment, education status, family size, vehicle ownership, non-public health providers, types of diseases, and prominent health issues in tribal households. The model indicates that Family size, health expenditures, and prevalence of non-communicable diseases increase the probability of catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditures for tribal households