Size doesn’t matter when it comes to health care……….
Day: November 17, 2019
Cost Shifting Is Silly
Status quo strategies used to reduce health care spend by employers includes cost shifting to plan members. Higher deductibles and higher out-of-pocket costs reduces insurance premium costs but not health care costs.
Back in the day a health insurance deductible equaled one week’s worth of pay. A $100 deductible was standard back in 1975.
Now it’s not uncommon to see annual deductibles of $4000 and more, much more.
It’s evident cost shifting has not tamed the healthcare beast.
And it’s clearly evident size doesn’t matter. A +400,000 life self-funded health plan in Texas has been practicing cost shifting for years. 64% of plan members are on a $2,750 front end deductible with no first dollar coverage (except for preventive care) before benefits are paid.