Wonder

Research Outline

Prepared for Carmen P. | Delivered November 26, 2019

Consumer Perceptions: Healthcare & Health Insurance

Goals

To obtain insight into the changing consumer perceptions around healthcare costs and health insurance in the United States.

Early Findings

According to a report by Health Affairs, "the burden of rising health care costs is being shifted to consumers".
Wasteful spending on no-value or low-value services accounts for 30% of health care costs.
Except for people who are enrolled in health plans that are high-deductible, few consumers have access to incentives or sufficient information to weigh the quality, cost, and expected outcomes of a particular service.
The Health Affairs study found that consumers are interested in the quality of service delivered by providers. However, their definition of quality is dramatically different from what clinical experts use in measuring quality.
Consumers have improved, over time, in their ability to compare different health plans.
According to JAMIA Open publication, "healthcare consumers are frustrated by the fragmented communication between care providers".
 Fifty-five percent of respondents in a survey mentioned that vital health information (such as visits with other doctors, existing medical conditions, and recent hospitalizations) was missing from their record.