Despite the expectations of some policymakers that the lower premiums and tax benefits of consumer-directed health plans would substantially reduce the number of people without health insurance, adults in these plans were no more likely to have been uninsured before enrolling in their plans than were those with more comprehensive insurance coverage, according to an annual survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute and The Commonwealth Fund. Ten percent of consumer-directed plan enrollees were uninsured before being covered by their current plan, compared with 20% among high-deductible health plan enrollees, and 24% among those with comprehensive coverage.
The survey also found that enrollment in CDHPs has not grown in the past year, even with the widespread attention they’ve received. About one-third of the 1.3 million adults in CDHPs do not receive employer contributions to their accounts, and nearly one in five does not contribute their own money to the accounts. Forty-four percent of adults in CDHPs spend 5% or more of their income on medical costs and premiums--double the rate of those with more comprehensive coverage. Despite the emphasis on the need for information on the cost and quality of providers to enable people in CDHPs to make informed decisions about their health care, adults in these plans were significantly less likely than those in more comprehensive health plans to report that their plans provided such information. If they had a choice, 36% of those in CDHPs--a 10% drop from a year ago--said they would stay with their plan, compared with 63% of those with comprehensive coverage. Read the issue brief.
