Many U.S. employees don’t understand how their healthcare coverage works and admit that their familiarity with the most basic healthcare vocabulary needs improvement, according to a survey of nearly 2,100 covered workers by Watson Wyatt, a global consulting firm.
According to the survey report, Employee Perspectives on Health Care: Voice of the Consumer, Watson Wyatt found that a top challenge for 43 percent of workers is understanding what their healthcare plan covers. Moreover, less than half are comfortable explaining common health benefit terms, such as co-pay or deductible, to a friend or coworker. And fewer than one in four feels comfortable describing health savings accounts, coinsurance, and terms such as formulary and center of excellence.
“It’s hard for employers to ask employees to take more responsibility for their health care when they are not speaking the same language,” said Kathryn Yates, global director of communication consulting at Watson Wyatt. “Helping employees improve their healthcare literacy and learn the terminology can make or break a company’s healthcare efforts overall.”
