On page 109 of the senate healthcare reform bill it states that small employers, those under 100 employees, must offer health insurance with deductibles no larger than $2000 for an individual and $4000 for a family. How this will effect the many employers that offer Health Savings Accounts with high deductibles I am not sure quite yet. It does bring into question the statement made by many politicians that if we like the coverage we have we can keep it. Personally I like my HSA plan with a $5500 deductible. It is inexpensive and covers me 100% after the deductible is met. They pay for the physical. To be forced to purchase a more expensive plan with a lower deductible seems unfair, if this truly is the case. I also did not read in the bill anything about these maximum deductible amounts being tied to a government index so that they may be increased to keep up with inflation. https://higginscompanies.com/health-insurance/group-health-insurance/
In 2016 a small employer may be considered a company with 50 or less employees, but until then it is 100 or less for now.
The lower the deductible, the lower incentive there is to stay or get healthy. This leads to higher utilization. It is my opinion that if an individual does not have a substantial financial interest in staying healthy, such as with a $5500 deductible in my case, many will simply run to the doctor for a pill instead of running to the gym.
There is plenty more to come!
Michael Higgins
602.405.8769