eHealthInsurance
January 3, 2008
According to a survey commissioned by eHealth, Inc., the parent company of eHealthInsurance, most consumers lack a basic understanding of even the most common health insurance terms as well as the particulars of their own health insurance coverage.
Less than a quarter of respondents (23 percent) reported that they were very sure of what the terminology used in their health insurance policy actually means.
Even basic terms proved difficult, with few respondents reporting an understanding of acronyms such as HMO (36 percent), PPO (20 percent) or HSA (11 percent).
Even though PPOs are the most common type of health insurance offered by U.S. employers, only a fifth (20 percent) know what PPO stands for.
“It’s clear Americans lack a basic understanding of health insurance terms, which may prevent them from selecting the health plan best suited to their individual needs,” said Sam Gibbs, senior vice president of eHealth, Inc.
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=201232&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1090963&highlight=
Comment:
By Don McCanne, MD
Although this survey was designed to be used in the promotion of eHealthInsurance, an online health insurance broker, it does provide information that is useful to health care reform advocates.
The opponents of a national health insurance program insist that the preferred solution is to make patients better health care shoppers by having them spend their own funds on health care, through the use of high-deductible health plans and health savings accounts.
Most concede that this trend has not had much of an impact yet on controlling health care spending, with some blaming information asymmetry. The purchaser of health care has only very limited access to useful pricing and quality information about the providers. So it is contended that more transparency is required.
Yet the private insurance industry claims that they have been successful in providing individuals with choice of a variety of health plans so that they don’t need to pay for any more coverage than they will actually use (as if anyone could possibly predict that). eHealthInsurrance is frequently cited as a resource that has made greater transparency in health plan purchasing a reality.
So how much does the health insurance shopper know? More importantly, how much does the health insurance purchaser know about the plan that they have in hand that actually specifies their coverage? Not much.
Even though PPOs are the most common type of employer-sponsored insurance, four-fifths don’t even know what PPO stands for. How many of those realize that PPOs take away choice of providers, and assess severe financial penalties for using providers outside of the plan?
Most individuals would prefer a health program with comprehensive benefits, free choice of providers, and the elimination of financial barriers to care (features of a single payer national health program). You won’t find such a plan at eHealthInsurance.
Instead of looking for transparency in the private health insurance marketplace, we should look for more transparency in the political process. Or do insurance and pharmaceutical industry funds create only an illusion of conflict of interest?