More Americans opt for high-deductible health insurance plans

[Newsjock]

Source: Los Angeles Times

Looking to save money in a weak economy, Americans increasingly are turning to health insurance plans with low premiums and high deductibles — prompting doctors and health experts to worry that consumers may be skipping routine care that could head off serious ailments.

Nationally, the number of workers with individual deductibles of at least $1,000 has nearly tripled over the last four years, reaching about 20 million, according to a recent survey of employers.

Some have pushed their deductibles as high as $10,000, and, to keep medical bills low, are forgoing colonoscopies, blood tests and other preventive procedures.

... The potential consequences are serious, experts warn. A new study by UCLA's Center for Health Policy Research found that 504,000 of 3 million Californians with high deductibles held off seeing doctors and specialists, and that half cited cost as the primary reason.

... "Statistically, some of them will have a disease that will be fatal that could have been prevented," said Frankenstein, a past president of the California Medical Assn. "That is a tragedy. I've spent my whole life trying to prevent that."

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/health/healthcare/la-fi-high-deductibles-20101109,0,3109106,full.story

[brewens]

1. Dr. Richard Frankenstein. Gotta love that. n/t

[melm00se]

3. it's pronounced Dr. Frankensteen n/t

[WinkyDink]

6. Ha!

[ejpoeta]

2. well how many have no choice. i know that our choices for insurance

involved high deductibe, higher deductible or even higher still deductible. i mean, one might figure you're better off taking the premiums and shoving them in an account and pray you never need it. because the insurance has it so they don't have to pay ANYTHING until you pay a hell of a lot of money. my husband's employer has offered employees $1000 for the health insurance accounts if they switch to that one. we are so lucky to have been able to qualify for the state health insurance. i wish everyone had the same ability.

[Scuba]

4. The wife and I bought a $10K deductible....

...to minimize cost until we're Medicare age. In the meantime, we're foregoing everything.

It's a risk, but the alternative is drastically more expensive.

Oh, and if our conditions at age 65 are poor due to lack of treatment for preventable illness, the taxpayers will get stuck (again).


It's not the child born with spina bifida that is the problem.

It's not the nurse at the bedside that's the problem

It's not the hospital trying to make a 3% margin so they can upgrade 20-year old equipment that's the problem.



Our entire system is designed to make the insurance companies more profitable. They're keeping the profitable patients for themselves and dumping the costly ones on the taxpayers.

[barbtries]

5. i know i got one

but i wouldn't call it an option. at work we were given no options. however my employer covered almost all of the deductible because they had taken away our choices and saved a whole bunch of money. also ours comes with an HSA

[hobbit709]

7. "Looking to save money in a weak economy"-MY ASS!

How about that's all they can barely afford instead.

[Delphinus]

8. You got it. n/t

[hunter]

9. And as the economy gets worse they'll "opt" for no insurance at all!

And then they'll "opt" for living in their cars and dumpster diving.

It's wonderful to live in a land of such freedoms!

God Bless America.

[Salviati]

10. can you really call it "opting for" when people have no real choice?

[kath]

11. Exactly what I was going to say - many are FORCED into these plans by their employer.

No choice whatsoever. Happened to us as of July 1.
(on edit -- way down in the article, it eventually gets mentioned that many employers are forcing their employees into these plans. But the headline is VERY misleading.)