XML Statistical map analysis of the mean and the gini coefficient of healthcare expenses in Ira

In many modern societies, the concepts of equity and equality are the most important notions for statesmen and people. Due to the rapid increase of expenses in the healthcare sector, more emphasis should be placed on measuring and monitoring inequalities across the country. This study aimed to evaluate inequalities in healthcare expenses, predict these expenses in Iran’s cities and prepare and interpret a statistical map. The data related to household’ healthcare expenses for 335 cities have been received from the Statistical Center of Iran. Data preparation, estimation and calculation of indicators have been carried out by programming in S-PLUS software. Spatial analysis and predictions were performed by geoR software and plotting statistical maps were carried out by Arcgis 9.2 software. According to the results, the mean and the Gini coefficient for cities are increasing from the East to the West of Iran on average. The Gini coefficient of expenses in all cities is high and especially inequality is higher in cities located in deserts and deprived areas than in other parts and the greatest inequalities are obtained for the cities in Provinces of Sistan-Baluchestan and some parts of Hormozgan province. To reduce inequalities and realize equity in healthcare, the government should try to allocate a special budget for decreasing the healthcare and medical expenses. Keywords: Geographic mapping, Health expenses, Inequality, Spatial Analysis