My Tricks That Make Living With Cancer More Bearable – FoxNews.com
My Tricks That Make Living With Cancer More Bearable – FoxNews.com.
Costs eat big holes in employer health-insurance net
Workers’ average out-of-pocket costs jumped 34% from 2004 to 2007
By Kristen Gerencher, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Americans with job-based health insurance saw their protection from higher out-of-pocket costs erode between 2004 and 2007, especially those who were sick and of modest means, according to a new study.
The majority of people with health insurance, about 160 million Americans, receive it through their jobs.
“American families with employer-based coverage were worse off in 2007 than they were in 2004,” said Jon Gabel, lead author of the study that was published in a June 2 Health Affairs Web exclusive. “This is during a period of time when the economy was expanding.”
The authors conclude that a growing number of people are underinsured, a term that refers only to what they pay out of pocket for medical services. Health-care affordability, which includes out-of-pocket costs plus employees’ premium contributions, also has taken a big hit.
Comparing expected health spending among different types of health plans, financial protection was greatest for those in health maintenance organizations (HMOs), the study found. Of five chronic conditions surveyed, patients with breast cancer suffered the highest out-of-pocket costs.
Workers faced an annual average of $729 in medical-services costs in 2007, including deductibles and other forms of cost-sharing such as co-payments and co-insurance. That’s up 34% from 2004, when the average out-of-pocket burden for those with employer coverage was $545.
With job-based health plans picking up 80% of total costs in 2007, they covered a slightly smaller percentage of overall expenses than they did in 2004 as more workers confronted plans with deductibles and as deductible levels were set higher, according to the study. But the main reason for rising out-of-pocket costs was the growth in overall health spending.
Going to extremes
The report showed a widening gap between adults who need to tap their health insurance to cover medical visits and those fortunate enough not to need to use their benefits much. Adults with chronic medical conditions drove higher spending for both their health plans and themselves.
At the two extremes, the average out-of-pocket expense for the 50% of workers with the lowest health spending grew 23% to $85 in 2007. But expenses jumped 42% to $8,703 among the highest-spending 1% of workers, the study found. For the highest spending 10% of workers, the average out-of-pocket costs amounted to $3,364, an increase of 39% since 2004.
For some patients, co-insurance may seem like a small sum — set at 10% or 20%, for example, when services are from an in-network health provider — but costs can add up quickly as absolute dollar figures rise. Insurance paid for 84% of the bill for five selected chronic conditions: asthma, breast cancer, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and hypertension, the study found.
Breast-cancer patients faced the biggest sticker shock. Even though insurance paid for more than 90% of a bill that averages $66,489, they had the largest out-of-pocket spending, the study found. Breast-cancer patients paid an average $6,250 for their treatment. Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease had the second highest out-of-pocket costs, at $2,200 a year.
“When that figure gets really high, even though you may be only paying 10% of the bill, it’s still a lot of money for somebody of modest means,” Gabel said. “For some high rollers…$6,000 for breast cancer is not much of a financial penalty, but it is for someone earning $30,000 a year.”
The researchers used simulated bill paying of actual claims histories in Thomson Healthcare’s MarketScan database to apply the spending of a large sample of adults to a representative national sample of employer-sponsored health plans.
In 2007, 71% of people earning 200% of the federal poverty level (about $41,300 a year for a family of four) who were among the top 25% in health-care spending were underinsured, the study found.
“In the United States, if you are sick and earn a modest income, then you are probably underinsured — even if you have employer-based health coverage,” the researchers wrote.
Overall, the recession may exacerbate the trend toward eroding financial protection as employers become more sensitive to the rising costs of workers’ health insurance, Gabel said.
“I would expect to see significant increases in cost-sharing in the next few years at a time when households are going to be less able to pay for it,” he said.
The study was conducted by researchers from the National Opinion Research Center and Watson Wyatt Worldwide, with funding from The Commonwealth Fund
Bindery worker struggles after wife’s death | ColumbiaTribune.com
Once again, another story of someone who struggles with out-of-pocket expenses due to cancer. This is a hard working man and yet if only he had a cancer policy he wouldn’t be hurting so bad. Please…please don’t think this will ever happen to you. Don’t think, “I’ve got a job. I have a couple months savings. I have great medical insurance.” Those are all excuses and come from truly not understanding how Aflac or a simple cancer policy could really help you.
Please read the story:
Bindery worker struggles after wife’s death | ColumbiaTribune.com .
Expenses of Life Dont Stop When Illness Sets In | TheLedger.com
Once again, a true life story that I talk about almost every single day. This is what Aflac is about. Helping people get through these things. Out-of-pocket expenses are REAL. CANCER is REAL. EMPLOYERS out there – WAKE UP. Do you want your employees to go through this? If you read this story and still don’t think this would happen to you, then you still don’t know quack. READ the story.
Expenses of Life Dont Stop When Illness Sets In | TheLedger.com.
Jobless Turn to Family for Help, Often With Complications – NYTimes.com
If this happens when someone loses their job, what if they have cancer or suffer a major injury? One family CANNOT support two. Simple economics.
Jobless Turn to Family for Help, Often With Complications – NYTimes.com.
Children Don’t Have Strokes? Just Ask Jared About His, at Age 7 – NYTimes.com
I think this should wake parents up that severe things can happen to children too. Not just adults. Often times parents will leave off children from their policies because, “ohh, they’re too young.”. May this article give you pause and rethink things.
Children Don’t Have Strokes? Just Ask Jared About His, at Age 7 – NYTimes.com.
YOU DON’T KNOW QUACK
If you work somewhere without Aflac, then you don’t know quack. If you think your employees would not be interested, then you don’t know quack. See the link below and KNOW QUACK.
Again, Cancer hits hard. Why Aflac is needed.
Again, another story of how cancer hits people financially. Yet its hard to convince people that they need this. ”I’m covered.” ”My health insurance covers cancer.” Little do people realize. If you don’t have Aflac, then you don’t know quack!
How One Cancer Patient Works the System – WSJ.com.
Struggling couple sees glimmer
This article talks about how the goodness of some people really help. However, it shows that just because you’re on Medicare doesn’t mean your medical expenses are covered. I don’t know how people I talk to who say, “Oh, I’ll be on Medicare so I don’t need supplemental insurance.” Oh really? If that’s true why does this stuff still happen? Please. Read this article and see what I’m talking about.
Struggling couple sees glimmer | www.azstarnet.com ®.
Cancer hits family hard financially
Another article showing why a you need a cancer policy from Aflac. This happens almost weekly. Please take action now. A family that needs money for family expenses.
| theledger.com | The Ledger | Lakeland, FL.