A study by the Rand Corp. said a new form of health plan may cause some employees in the United States not to seek necessary care.
The nonprofit organization said in its report, published Tuesday in the journal Health Affairs, that the new plans adopted by some employers force employees to make much higher co-payments for care and drugs, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
The researchers examined multiple previous studies dealing with the plans, known as consumer-directed healthcare plans, and found that the annual deductible for the plans is typically between $1,050 and $2,000 for an individual and between $2,100 and $4,000 for a family. Those numbers are considerably higher than the average $220 deductible for a family plan under a typical employer-sponsored health plan, the Post said.
The study's authors said the plans saved the employers 10 percent on healthcare costs but lead many patients to forgo needed care to avoid having to pay the higher fees.
"There are some studies in which people are reporting that they don't fill a prescription or they don't get follow-up that's recommended by a doctor," said Melinda Beeuwkes Buntin, a Rand economist and the lead author. "So those two things would be cause for concern."
Copyright 2006 by United Press International
Related stories:
Health care and the US presidential election
Health care is playing a bigger role in this election than in any presidential contest in the past. "There are now more than 45 million people in America without health insurance for the entire year; almost twice that number lack coverage for at least a month out of the year. Over the last few years, most of the newly uninsured are from the middle class. As unemployment rises, along with gas and food prices, more and more people will be unable to afford health insurance, especially as it gets more expensive each year. The combination of a sagging economy, increasing numbers of uninsured, and a disproportionately affected middle class may make this a tipping point," said Aaron Carroll, M.D, director of the Center for Health Policy and Professionalism Research (CHPPR) and associate professor of pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine.
Lawmakers make a final push for mental health bill
(AP) -- Solving the nation's economic crisis may also help Americans struggling with getting treatment for mental illness. These patients often face an added burden: limited insurance coverage compared with people whose ills are physical. The massive economic bill coming before the House addresses that problem.
4 in 10 voters don't see either Obama or McCain health-care plan as better for them
As part of the ongoing poll series, Debating Health: Election 2008, the Harvard Public Opinion Research Program at the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and Harris Interactive® conducted a new survey focused on how voters think the presidential candidates' health care reform plans would affect them personally – rather than how they think the plans would affect the nation as a whole. The survey found that voters view the candidates' plans differently from this perspective. Four in ten registered voters don't believe one candidate's health care plan would be better for them than the other. (This includes those who think there wouldn't be a difference for them between the plans (27%) and those who don't know if there would be (13%)). More voters think Senator Barack Obama's plan would be better for them than Senator John McCain's plan (33% vs. 27%). This survey was conducted September 17-21, 2008, by telephone among a national cross section of 935 registered voters in the United States.
Personality can hamper a physician's assessment of depression
A physician's personality can affect practice behavior in inquiries about patient mood symptoms and the diagnosis of depression, according to a study led by University of Rochester Medical Center researchers.
McCain health-care plan transforms US health insurance but few gains in numbers of insured
A paper published in the journal Health Affairs highlights the cost and coverage implications of Senator John McCain's healthcare plan and describes its likely impact on the level and stability of insurance coverage as well as the healthcare costs faced by families. The plan would eliminate the current tax exclusion of employer payments for health coverage, replace the exclusion with a refundable tax credit for those who purchase coverage, and encourage Americans to move to a national market for non-group insurance.
Nearly half of US adults will develop painful knee osteoarthritis by age 85: study
Almost half of all U.S. adults and nearly two-thirds of obese adults will develop painful osteoarthritis of the knee by age 85, a study based at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill suggests.
Millions face undiagnosed heart risk say researchers after mass screening
One in three people with a high risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) over the next 10 years have not been diagnosed, according to a major UK study in the September issue of IJCP, the
International Journal of Clinical Practice.
Timing of political messages influences voter preferences, researcher finds
In political campaigns, timing is almost everything. Candidates communicate with voters over a long period of time before voters actually vote. What candidates say to these voters is, of course, important, but it turns out that when they say it also influences voter preferences.