Obamacare aimed to get all Americans covered by health insurance. While more people may be covered under health insurance plans, it far missed its mark. More than 10% of Americans remain uninsured, despite being force to pay increased taxes. And despite being insured, the unaffordability of healthcare persist for many.
Why is healthcare becoming increasingly unaffordable in the US?
– Many people are being forced to pay insurance premiums that they cannot afford. In our current economy, millions are living paycheck-to-paycheck. They are now forced to either buy health insurance or pay taxes.
– Employers are paying less towards insurance coverage for their employees. It has become unaffordable for them as well and they are laying some of the costs onto their employees.
– Many of the insurance plans under the health insurance exchanges have large deductibles. I have seen deductibles over $10,000 annually. The insurance company will pay nothing except in case of a hospitalization. The patient bears much of the cost and many are simply forgoing medical care.
– More diagnostic tests are being denied. Patients are given the choice to pay out-of-pocket. Many of these tests are costly. So now, the patient has to pay their premium, their deductible, and for any denied tests. Again, many simply go without because they cannot afford it.
– Insurance companies are narrowing their formularies. Medications that patients may have taken for years are suddenly not covered. They are faced with the choice to either pay for the medication that they know works for them, or to try a different one that may or may not work. I have seen asthmatics forced to switch inhalers end up in the Emergency Room wheezing.
– Costs is healthcare are sky-rocketing. New technology and medications are driving up these costs and the patients often bear the burden of the cost of this innovation.
It is not enough to cover patients with health insurance but we need to make healthcare affordable. Insurance companies are raking in huge profits while patients are paying to be denied care. Surely, a conflict of interest exists here. We need more oversight of 3rd party insurance companies. Doctors are over-regulated by what we can offer patients and how we treat them. shouldn’t 3rd parties bear more responsibility and oversight in containing healthcare costs while maintaining high quality medicine?
Healthcare costs are out-of-control in the US. Everyone needs to bear some of the effort to rein it in and make it more affordable. Insurance companies first turned to doctors and cut their reimbursements, or at least did not increase them in over a decade. And they make it more difficult to get paid. There are so many loopholes they use to get out of paying submitted claims. But, they have cut doctors as much as that target will bear. Now, they push the costs onto patients. Patients are paying more than ever. And they cannot afford it. Perhaps, it is time for these 3rd parties to step up to the plate and take their turn of bearing the burden of rising healthcare costs?
It truly saddens me to see a patient who cannot afford healthcare for whatever reason. What is the purpose of having the best medical technology in the world when so many are unable to afford it? We all need to do better, for the sake of patients who need our help.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Linda Girgis, MD, FAAFP
