All we want for Christmas is good health and wellness for everyone.
But listening to North Carolinians, that goal is becoming increasingly elusive.
Most North Carolinians don’t think health insurance companies have their best interests in mind, according to a Meredith University study whose results were released earlier this month. is a major driver of rising healthcare costs, reports WSJ’s Richard Craver.
Why do people think so?
According to research: With monthly premiums and copayments increasing, both factors are determined by health insurance companies.
According to a poll, “the premium increase has resulted in very high levels of consumer dissatisfaction, with nearly half (48.3%) reporting that they are very dissatisfied.”
People are also reading…
Only 8.3% of surveyed respondents felt they had their health insurance company in mind.
Others found varying degrees of “not caring”.
Approximately 23% of respondents said they received procedures not covered by insurance, 20% said their claims were denied, and 16% said they had to perform unnecessary paperwork to receive treatment.
Some even received a surprise bill after their treatment. Research shows that some people “give up” because it was so complicated to appeal the bill.
These costs are directly related to the fact that 20% of North Carolinians (1 in 5) pay regular medical bills. It takes a toll on families and state economies.
Some may postpone urgent and essential medical care for fear of increasing debt. This is especially troubling when it involves mental health care.
Survey respondents were customers of major insurance companies. About 44% of respondents reported being customers of NC’s Blue Cross Blue Shield, with 17.6% United Healthcare, 10.3% Aetna and 7.1% Cigna.
It should come as no surprise to anyone that these companies routinely report annual profits in the millions or billions.
Nevertheless, according to the American Medical Association, health care costs continue to rise by about 4.5% annually, rising faster in the United States than in other developed countries. This includes treatment and prescription options.
It’s not because we use more healthcare than anyone else in the world. It’s because… well, it’s complicated and driven by market forces and political decisions. It’s like you keep denying it.
The price is further driven by the fact that some people have access to comprehensive care, while others have little or no access.
“The structure of the current system is a treatment-driven system, not a prevention-driven system,” Yaseen Hayajneh, an associate professor of health care at Western Connecticut State University, told CNBC reporters earlier this year. I was.
Suggestions for improvement regularly range from making health care services more competitive through market forces to increasing government intervention, such as by allowing Medicare to directly negotiate the price of prescription drugs. Various. There is a fair amount of evidence suggesting that such methods work.
It seems pragmatic to define what works elsewhere and do the same here, but it still requires political will.
Despite the lack of trust in insurers, there seems to be even less trust in government leaders to find solutions.
If there’s one area in American life that I’d like voters to “stand up for” and “withdraw” from, it’s the area of health care coverage, where people should definitely put profits first. We will be at the mercy of the dollar until we have enough civic demand to influence political will.
Shelley Lyford, president and CEO of the Gary and Mary West Foundation and West Health, said: It’s not about politics or greed. It’s time to put politics aside and push for sensible policies, not because we’re Democrats or Republicans, but because it’s the right thing to do. “
Come on, Gen Z, we’re ready for you.
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