Only 14% of respondents in a recent survey understood common health insurance terms such as deductible, copay and co-insurance, and only 11% were able to accurately calculate their cost for a four-day hospital stay. The lack of general understanding about how health insurance works keeps people from taking advantage of incentives designed to lower costs, the lead researcher said, but insurers are working to expand Americans’ health literacy. “A very broad spectrum of our member companies are engaged in health literacy efforts,” said AHIP spokeswoman Susan Pisano. Insurers are trying “to make information as easy to get and as easy to use and as easy to understand as possible.” National Public Radio/Shots blog (8/6)
Insurers work to fill consumer knowledge gap
August 11, 2013 By
