Health Services Insights: review time and acceptance speed

ISSN 1178-6329 · SAGE Publishing · Multidisciplinary

Half of the articles Health Services Insights accepted in 2025 were accepted within 134 days of submission (n = 86); the middle half took 109–166 days.

Submission → acceptance (2025)
134 days median
middle half 109–166 · n = 86
Acceptance → online
33 days median
middle half 25–40 · n = 86
Change since 2023
No clear change since 2023 (median 141 → 134 days; 90% CI -30 to +16 days).
Open access · fees
Open access (DOAJ) · $2,000

Accepted articles only · dates deposited by the publisher in PubMed · data as of Sep 15, 2026

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How long does Health Services Insights take to accept a paper?

days0601201802402021: middle half 87–162 days1132021n=662023: middle half 93–192 days1412023n=812024: middle half 93–183 days1382024n=722025: middle half 109–166 days1342025n=86
Line = median; shaded box = middle half of articles (25th–75th percentile). Year of acceptance.
Days from submission to acceptance, by year of acceptance
YearArticles (n)25th pctMedian75th pct90th pctAccepted <14 daysHave a revised date
2025861091341660.0%0%
202472931381834.2%0%
202381931411920.0%0%
202166871131621.5%0%

Distribution in 2025

0–29 days: 0% (0 articles)030–59 days: 2% (2 articles)3060–89 days: 14% (12 articles)6090–119 days: 29% (25 articles)90120–149 days: 19% (16 articles)120150–179 days: 17% (15 articles)150180–209 days: 8% (7 articles)180210–239 days: 3% (3 articles)210240–269 days: 2% (2 articles)240270–299 days: 3% (3 articles)270300–329 days: 0% (0 articles)300330–359 days: 0% (0 articles)330360+ days: 1% (1 articles)360+days from submission to acceptance (30-day bins)
Show as a table
DaysArticlesShare
0–2900.0%
30–5922.3%
60–891214.0%
90–1192529.1%
120–1491618.6%
150–1791517.4%
180–20978.1%
210–23933.5%
240–26922.3%
270–29933.5%
300–32900.0%
330–35900.0%
360+11.2%

From acceptance to online publication

After acceptance, half of the 2025 articles appeared online within 33 days (middle half 25–40 days, n = 86).

From submission to online publication, the median was 174 days (middle half 139–208 days, n = 86).

Read these numbers carefully

  • These times describe articles the journal accepted. Rejected manuscripts never appear in public data, so they cannot tell you how long a rejection takes.
  • Dates are the ones the publisher deposited with PubMed. Some publishers record the date a revised manuscript arrived as the submission date, which makes review look faster.
  • Invited articles and special issues can move faster than regular submissions.

Open access status and publishing fees

Open access (listed in DOAJ). Listed APC: $2,000 (DOAJ).

OpenAPC has fewer than 5 reported payments for this journal in 2023–2025, so no typical amount is shown.

Many journals waive or reduce fees for authors from eligible countries or institutions with publishing agreements — check with the journal and your library.

Integrity and indexing signals

Facts from public records, shown without judgement. See the methodology for why each can be worth a closer look.

Listed in DOAJYes (DOAJ record)
Articles indexed for MEDLINE in 2025None found (the journal may be in PubMed through PubMed Central instead)
Retractions0 retracted articles among 374 added to PubMed in 2021–2025 (0.00 per 1,000), per the Retraction Watch Database.
Accepted within 14 days of submission0.0% of 2025 articles
Publication volume85 articles added to PubMed in 2025 (+5% vs 2024).

Topics and scope

Health Professions journalsGeneral Health Professions journals

Similar journals — faster or cheaper, side by side

Journals publishing on the most similar topics (OpenAlex), ordered by similarity. Only 2025 figures are compared with the 2025 median of Health Services Insights, 134 days.

Paid APC medianDOAJMEDLINE
BMC Health Services Research175 (2025, n = 1,747)$3,450$2,952 (91 payments)YesYes
The International Journal of Health Planning and Management173 (2025, n = 83)≈$4,030NoYes
Health Economics Review180 (2025, n = 114)$3,090$2,642 (6 payments)YesNo
International Journal for Equity in Health141 (2025, n = 363)$3,790$3,223 (14 payments)YesYes
Health Services Research158 (2025, n = 158)≈$3,750NoYes
Health Policy220 (2025, n = 204)≈$4,220NoYes
Medical Care210 (2025, n = 51)NoYes
Israel Journal of Health Policy Research178 (2025, n = 75)No fee (DOAJ)YesYes
International Journal of Health Policy and Management208 (2025, n = 100)$1,500YesYes

Frequently asked questions

How long does Health Services Insights take to accept a paper?

Half of the articles Health Services Insights accepted in 2025 were accepted within 134 days of submission (n = 86); the middle half took 109–166 days. Based on dates in PubMed for accepted articles only.

How long after acceptance are Health Services Insights articles published online?

Half of the articles accepted in 2025 appeared online within 33 days of acceptance (n = 86).

Does Health Services Insights charge an article processing charge (APC)?

Listed APC: $2,000 (DOAJ).

Sources and method

Journal identity: ISSN-L 1178-6329; NLM ID 101624726; OpenAlex record. Speed figures use 86 articles accepted in 2025 with valid dates; excluded records for that year: none.

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Data sources. Submission, acceptance and publication dates: Courtesy of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (PubMed, entries through Sep 15, 2026). NLM does not endorse Journal Clock, and these figures may not reflect the most current PubMed data. Journal fees and open-access listing: DOAJ (CC0, retrieved Sep 16, 2026). Fees paid by institutions: OpenAPC (Open Database License, retrieved Sep 16, 2026). Retractions: Retraction Watch Database via Crossref (retrieved Sep 16, 2026). Journal identifiers and topics: OpenAlex (CC0). Currency conversion: ECB reference rates (Sep 15, 2026). How these numbers are calculated · For organisations.