Survey: America's underinsurance problem

Nearly a quarter of insured adults' health plans may not offer enough coverage to cushion high out-of-pocket costs, according to new estimates from the Commonwealth Fund.

In a survey of approximately 3,000 adults ages 19 to 64 who had at least one full year of insurance, 23 percent were found to be underinsured. The Commonwealth Fund considers underinsured Americans those who spent 10 percent or more of their household income on medical bills in the past year or had a deductible of at least 5 percent of their income. Premiums were excluded.

The estimated portion of underinsured Americans remains statistically unchanged from 2010, according to the report. However, it has increased significantly since 2003, when just 13 percent of the population was considered underinsured. This increase is due in part to rising deductibles — the report indicates that the share of insured adults with high deductibles has nearly tripled from 3 percent in 2013 to 11 percent in 2014.

Higher out-of-pocket costs have left 51 percent of underinsured Americans with medical bill issues or debt. This is more than twice the percentage of fully insured Americans (22 percent) who reported problems with medical bills or debt. Almost half of underinsured respondents — 47 percent — also reported using all of their savings to pay for medical bills, and 44 percent reported receiving a lower credit rating due to bill payments.                                                                                                                     

More importantly, underinsurance has caused some people to forgo needed medical care. Forty-four percent of underinsured Americans reported at least one instance of forgoing medical care due to the cost, according to the report.

 

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