April 10th, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, News, Opinion, True Stories
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Physicians aren’t exempt from the struggles with personal health insurance coverage, affordability, denied coverage, etc.
When I finished my medical training and opened my practice 20 years ago, I had to buy individual coverage. All options included a rider that excluded coverage on my uterus and ovaries due to fibroid surgery during my training, so when I had my TAH & BSO a few years later, the entire cost came out of my pocket. Fortunately I knew how to ask for cost reductions, but still.
My husband and I are both small business individuals. I have always carried our health insurance under my name (office). Over the years we have gone to a health savings account with a high deductible to keep the cost reasonable. Fortunately, we have been mostly healthy. Last month we received a letter from Assurant Health. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
March 24th, 2010 by AlanDappenMD in Primary Care Wednesdays
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Many companies and consumers are turning to higher-deductible health care plans (HDHPs) in order to keep their insurance policies more affordable. The rational basis of these plans is that since you’re using your money and you are in control, you will pay more attention to what is really being offered to you as well as to the cost relative to value. You will be more likely to challenge your doctor to provide the rationale for an expensive test or drug, and to encourage your doctor to innovate to provide lower-cost alternatives.
A trap of these new health plans, as currently structured, is that you’re herded into in-network ‘preferred providers.’ The rationale of the insurance company is that they can control doctors’ prices, thus brokering a better rate for you. They also want to use your loyalty to the network to control physicians’ practices. “Preferred,” in reality, does not refer to quality; rather it just means the doctor has signed an agreement with the insurance company, binding them to the insurance company rules, which favor the insurance company, not the patient.
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