With open enrollment season upon us, consumers have a chance to evaluate these consumer-driven plans and decide if these new options might be right for them. Past editions of this study have accurately predicted other health care changes, so these findings carry a great deal of weight among industry leaders.
Consumer-driven health plans, which include health reimbursement accounts and health savings accounts, are high-deductible medical plans that are coupled with a savings account. Employees can use those funds to pay their health care costs.
With lower premiums than traditional health insurance plans, consumer-driven health plans enable consumers to choose what kind of health care services they would like to receive, making them more active participants in the decision-making process.
Nearly 30 percent of employers are planning to offer these consumer-driven health plans, and employees will need to determine if they are ready to switch to this new way of approaching health care.
The study also revealed that there is not much hope for those awaiting nationalized health care. Only 3 percent of respondents felt that there was a likelihood of adopting a single-payer system and only 7 percent saw U.S. government mandates in America's future.
While the future of health care is still unknown, the study predicts that America is headed toward private market initiatives to help solve this crisis.
