Those enrolled in high deductible health plans are no more likely to shop around for care than individuals with other types of coverage, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.
For the study, a HDHP was defined as having a deductible greater than $1,250 for individual coverage, or more than $2,500 for family coverage.
Below are five findings from the study.
1. Of HDHP enrollees, 60 percent believe there are large differences in prices and quality across healthcare providers.
2. Only 17 percent of HDHP members think higher price physicians provide better quality care.
3. Roughly 4 percent of HDHP members compared out-of-pocket differences among providers, compared to 3 percent of those enrolled in traditional plans.
4. Of HDHP participants, 56 percent said they would use additional sources of healthcare pricing information if it were available.
5. "Simply increasing a deductible, which gives enrollees skin in the game, appears insufficient to facilitate price shopping," the report concluded. "If encouraging price shopping is viewed as an important policy goal, then there is a need for greater availability of price information and innovative approaches to enrollee engagement with this information."