Research Paper on Consumer-driven Healthcare Plan - Essay Example

Research Paper on Consumer Driven Healthcare Plan Introduction A consumer driven health care plan is an insurance policy where the user is provided with several options of acquiring health insurance and is presented with an opportunity to determine how their funds are spent. Consumer driven healthcare plans have overtime been celebrated for various reasons including the fact that they offer customers with the opportunity of embracing preventive mechanisms. Though a considerable percentage of employees had second thoughts on consumer-driven health plans at the time of its introduction, tides have changed and quite a number of employees are resorting to this strategy (Garson et.al, 2007). Partly the reason is the fact that this platform shifts focus from the insurance firms to the clients. In an attempt to encourage a larger section of the market to adopt this form of insurance, stakeholders in the field of health and insurance have overtime argued that those who employ consumer driven healthcare plans spend little in seeking medication as compared to those who embrace other insurance plans, an ideology that all believe in. This research paper, therefore, aims to evaluate the effect of consumer driven health care plans on medical expenditure. Literature Review Consumer driven healthcare plans have moved from the conception to the enactment stage. Presently, it is one of the most dependable healthcare options, as all the spotlight is focused on the consumer, who is the ultimate decision-maker (Herzlinger, 2004). Due to its execution, well-established insurance firms such as United Health as well as newly created ones such as Luminos, consider it integral in their development and relevance to the market. Amidst all the war reception, market analysts have in the recent past predicted that this health insurance plan will bring about adverse selection problems, and may affect the level of service delivery to clients in the future. Such predictions have nevertheless been based on personal concerns and are yet to be proven by research. Consumer driven healthcare plans differ from the other insurance plans philosophically and in terms of design (Herzlinger, 2004). In terms of philosophy, the insurance plan directly involves all clients and presents them with an opportunity to become decision makers. In terms of design, consumers are expected to open a health spending account and contribute to the account. Once the annual subscription amount is met, the insurance firm meets all the client’s health expenditures. On the other hand, the company does not contribute to the medication of the client in case he or she has not met the annual deductible net. The program is similarly designed in such a way that the clients will be expected to spend from their own pockets once they have used funds allocated to them by the insurance providers. In as much as consumer-driven healthcare plans have been compared to medical savings account that were used in the nineties, they still offer more to the client (Garson et.al, 2007). This is since the clients are provided with the information that they need to know about the insurance platforms. In addition, the insurance companies provide the clients with information regarding healthcare facilities, the quality of services they offer, the experience of the staff, the price they charge and in complex situations, even the level of education is provided. Research Approach and Methodology Our group employed the questionnaire method was used in carrying out this research majorly because it provided a chance to gather data from a large population of people within a short duration. Each group member was tasked with delivering the questionnaires to their participants, and was scheduled to collect them after one week. We used forty participants, each of which was brought up to speed on the significance of the survey. As in other studies, the questionnaires did not require the participants to reveal their identity. The first section sought to establish their age and gender, with the second touching on their annual medical expenditure. The third part touched on the insurance strategy that they were using as well as the reason for settling on it. The participants were not influenced in a way to take part in the exercise, and each to be as honest as possible. After the whole exercise, we collected all the questionnaires and carried out data analysis. Data Analysis From the data we collected, we realized that there was gender balance among the participants as 57% of them were males while the remaining 48% were females. Age-wise, we realized that most of the participants were between forty and fifty years old as only six of them were above fifty. Seventy-five percent of the participants attested to the fact that they have embraced consumer-driven insurance plan while the remaining said that they used other strategies of insurance. A considerable percentage of those who attested to using the plan argued that they found the plan consumer friendly and informative. Some also mentioned the fact that it provides them with many alternatives. On the other hand, those who use other insurance plans cited the fact that they are not attracted by the fact that the scheme does not cover medication costs when the deductible net has not been met. The data revealed that those who employ other insurance mechanisms spend more on health as compared to those who have embraced the consumer-driven healthcare plan. Discussion As mentioned in the section above that focuses on the data analysis, those who embrace consumer-driven healthcare plans spend little as compared to those who use other healthcare platforms. This is so because the latter tend to go through several instances of out of pocket expenditure. Those who use consumer-driven plans seek medication on several occasions, notably after meeting the deductible net (Wolper, 2004). On the other hand, those who use other plans do not visit hospitals regularly due to the fear of high cost of treatment. In the end, the two practices influence the health of the entire population. This is because those who embrace consumer-driven health have rapid diagnosis resulting in the right medication at the appropriate time. On the other hand, those who use other programs may find their health deteriorating if the diagnosis was not made in a timely manner. Conclusion Consumer driven healthcare plans currently appeal to a considerable percentage of the population, notably those who can afford it. It comes in handy as it ensures that the health of the consumer is watched and at the same time reduces incidences of out of pocket expenditure. One major obstacle is that it appears out of reach for a section of the population, particularly the low-income earners and it is time insurance providers considered this. References Garson, A., & Engelhard, C. L. (2007). Health care half-truths: Too many myths, not enough reality. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Pub. Herzlinger, R. E. (2004). Consumer-Driven Health Care: Implications for Providers, Payers, and Policy-Makers. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Wolper, L. F. (2004). Health care administration: Planning, implementing, and managing organized delivery systems. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett Pub. Read More