Interviews with 45 people with medical debt reveal that having private health insurance does not always protect against significant out-of-pocket medical bills, according to a report by The Access Project and Brandeis University. Seventy percent of those interviewed had employer-sponsored insurance, and only half had a choice of plans. Two-thirds of respondents said premiums, deductibles, copays, or co-insurance contributed to their medical debt, and more than a third said they went into debt paying for uncovered services. Families with special-need children also reported that many services their children needed were not reimbursed by their insurance plans. Nearly half said that medical debt negatively affected their health as they curtailed necessary medical treatment, and over one third used all their savings to pay medical bills or stopped saving for retirement to get themselves out of medical debt.
The report recommends that insurance companies be required to provide consumers with clear information on services that are covered and that states should require insurers to file requests for premium increases and hold public hearings on the requests. It also advises setting standards on comprehensive, affordable insurance and developing private/public partnerships to share the costs of high-quality coverage.
