Background
The process of updating the National Health Insurance (NHI) basket of services is key to the successful implementation of NHI. It is important to monitor citizen priorities for health insurance coverage and their attitudes towards the priority setting process. In addition, as the process has evolved, the subject of health inequalities has become more prominent on the policy agenda. Public knowledge of and attitudes towards health inequalities should also be monitored and linked to the priority setting process.

Objectives
To continue ongoing monitoring of public priorities, knowledge and attitudes towards health care priority setting in connection with updating the NHI basket of services, and to measure public knowledge and attitudes towards health inequalities.

Methods
Focus groups with key informants were held in order to refine research instruments. A survey among the general public was carried out including questions about priorities, knowledge of the process for updating the NHI basket, attitudes towards the process, knowledge and attitudes towards health inequalities, in addition to basic socio economic variables.

Findings
A representative sample of the adult Israeli population, N=690, completed the survey. The findings, following previous trends, indicate relatively high preference of the public for quality of life enhancing medical interventions and preventative treatments. Lower priorities were assigned to life extending treatments in terminal cases, health education interventions and services aimed at increasing cultural competence, such as translation services. The public are aware of health inequalities and favor policies to reduce them, such as reallocating resources to enable universal access to supplemental insurance, though not increased taxation or transfer of resources among geographical areas.

Conclusions
The Israeli public is increasingly aware of and understanding of the priority setting process, and will support reallocations of resources to quality of life enhancing services, as well as preventive interventions. The public will support efforts to reduce health inequalities.

Policy Implications / recommendations
Robust public debate and educational efforts are required to support reallocation of resources to health education, cultural competence, and reduction of health inequalities.

Hadassah School of Public Health, The Hebrew University

Research number: A/70/2005