By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    medicare part d benefits
    Everything that You Need to Know About Medicare Part D
    August 15, 2022
    Best Ways to Boost Your Immune System this Winter
    Best Ways to Boost Your Immune System this Winter
    November 15, 2022
    back pain issues
    Ways to Treat Constant Back Pain
    August 21, 2023
    Latest News
    How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
    July 17, 2025
    Beyond Nutrition: Everyday Foods That Support Whole-Body Health
    June 15, 2025
    The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
    June 11, 2025
    The Best Home Remedies for Migraines
    June 5, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    More On Wellness Programs To Improve Health and Reduce Costs
    January 25, 2012
    Privatizing Social Security and Medicare: Who Can Defuse Political Dynamite?
    June 12, 2011
    Study: Risk of Death in Elderly Patients with Dementia Doubled with Some Antipsychotic Medications
    February 26, 2012
    Latest News
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
    How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
    July 17, 2025
    How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
    July 17, 2025
    Let Your Lawyer Handle the Work Before You Pay Medical Costs
    July 6, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Are High-deductible Health Plans Working?
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Health Reform > Are High-deductible Health Plans Working?
Health ReformHospital AdministrationPolicy & Law

Are High-deductible Health Plans Working?

Michael Kirsch
Michael Kirsch
Share
1 Min Read
SHARE
May I whine for a few sentences please?  My staff and I have a high-deductible medical insurance plan.  As the costs of coverage increased each year, we had to find a product that we could afford for our small private practice.  As any small business owner knows, margins are tight, revenue is declining and expenses inexorably rise.  And physicians, unlike other retailers, cannot raise our fees.  Would you want to invest in a company with this business model?  If so, then contact me directly.
 
May I whine for a few sentences please?  My staff and I have a high-deductible medical insurance plan.  As the costs of coverage increased each year, we had to find a product that we could afford for our small private practice.  As any small business owner knows, margins are tight, revenue is declining and expenses inexorably rise.  And physicians, unlike other retailers, cannot raise our fees.  Would you want to invest in a company with this business model?  If so, then contact me directly.
 
High-deductibles health plans are painful for consumers.  The first several thousand dollars are borne by the individual.  While we have an HSA (Health Savings Account), which confers a tax advantage, it is still painful to fork over wads of one’s wages to cover medical expenses.  Isn’t that what medical insurance is supposed to do?
 
Would we expect fire insurance to cover only part of our house if it burned down?
 
Will fire insurance cover a fire?
 
But, I recognize that high-deductible health plans are an effective means to combat over-diagnosis and over-treatment, two of the deepest systemic failings in the medical profession.  Indeed, highlighting these two practices has been a leitmotif of this blog.  I have repeated in multiple posts my belief that patients need to have skin in the game if cost-effective medicine is to be achieved.
 
Just this past week I have seen how this works.
 
A close acquaintance has been suffering from arm pain and consulted an orthopedist.  A steroid injection was administered and the situation fortunately improved.  The individual contacted the physician’s office for additional advice and an MRI of the arm was advised.  The patient replied that she would research area radiology facilities for pricing as this service would be out-of-pocket as she had a high deductible plan.  Later, on reflection, the individual decided to hold off on the MRI, particularly as she was improving.
 
There’s a lot we can learn in this vignette.
 
  • It’s easy for physicians to order tests that cost them nothing.
  • It’s easy for patients to accept tests that cost them nothing.
 
I’m sure that if my acquaintance had full coverage with no deductible, that she would have dutifully accepted the advice for an MRI.  Why not?  The doctor wants the test and it’s free.  However, if this patient has to shell out a thousand bucks to view the internal workings of an ailing arm that’s making progress, there may be some push back.  My personal belief is that this MRI was not only expensive, but was not medically necessary, a terrible combination that is responsible for so much rot in our health care system.
 
Of course, I realize the dangers of high-deductible plans.  Indeed, many previously uninsured folks who have been ‘rescued’ by Obamacare are now facing this predicament.  Many of them forfeit medical care that they and their families need because they can’t afford it.  For so many families, a $5,000 deductible is like not having medical insurance at all. This has to be fixed, and it won’t be easy. 
 
Let me share an arcane law of economics.   It’s easier to spend someone else’s money.  Consider this example.  When you are in a fancy restaurant, and someone else is paying, do you order differently?

 

 
TAGGED:health insurancehigh deductible plans
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
Global Healthcare Policy & Law
July 17, 2025
paramedics in surgical gloves and masks
How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
Health care
July 16, 2025
a woman giving a key
How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
Health
July 16, 2025
a woman with kinesio tapes on her back arm
How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
Health care
July 16, 2025

You Might also Like

osteopaths
BusinessHealth ReformMedical EducationPolicy & Law

Osteopathic Medical Schools Are Increasing the Numbers of Quality Grads

August 3, 2014
BI analytics HIS
BusinessFinanceHospital AdministrationRadiologySpecialties

Using Business Intelligence and Analytics for Radiology Billing

May 11, 2013
the doctor will skype you now telemedicine
Medical InnovationsNewsPublic HealthRemote DiagnosticsSocial Media

The Doctor will SKYPE You Now

March 14, 2012
medicaid drug costs
FinanceHealth ReformPolicy & LawPublic Health

Is Managed Care the Answer to Reduce Medicaid Drug Costs?

August 14, 2013
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?