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| Research article summary (published 30 Mar 2002): |
Similarities and differences in choosing health plans.
Full Abstract
BACKGROUND:
Increasingly, consumers have multiple health insurance options. New information is being developed to help consumers with these choices.
OBJECTIVES:
To study similarities and differences in how the publicly and privately insured choose health plans. To explore the effect of traditional enrollment materials and reports developed by the Consumer Assessment of Health Plans Study (CAHPS) on consumers' perceptions and decision-making.
RESEARCH DESIGN:
Using data from eight CAHPS demonstrations, we tested for significant differences across consumers with employer-sponsored insurance, Medicaid, and Medicare.
SUBJECTS:
Approximately 10,000 consumers with employer-sponsored, Medicaid, and Medicare health plans.
MEASURES:
Perceptions of the health plan selection process, use of information sources, and reactions to and use of traditional enrollment materials and CAHPS reports.
RESULTS:
Most consumers with all types of insurance thought that choosing a health plan was important and obtained information from multiple sources. Choosing a plan was more difficult for Medicare and Medicaid recipients than for the privately insured. When choosing a plan, Medicaid recipients cared most about convenience and access, whereas the privately insured emphasized providers and costs. The percentage of consumers who looked at and remembered the CAHPS report varied widely from 24% to 77%. In all but one of the demonstration sites, most consumers spent less than 30 minutes looking at the CAHPS report.
CONCLUSIONS:
Group sponsors and the developers of information interventions such as CAHPS may need to invest in developing and testing different reporting approaches for Medicare, Medicaid, and privately insured consumers.
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Author information
Author/s: Farley Short, Pamela (P); McCormack, Lauren (L); Hibbard, Judith (J); Shaul, James A (JA); Harris-Kojetin, Lauren (L); Fox, Michael H (MH); Damiano, Peter (P); Uhrig, Jennifer D (JD); Cleary, Paul D (PD);
Affiliation: Pennsylvania State University, 116 Henderson Building, University Park, PA 16802, USA. pxs46(-atsign-)psu.edu
Journal and publication information
Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
Journal: Medical care (Med Care), published in United States. (Language: eng)
Reference: 2002-Apr; vol 40 (issue 4) : pp 289-302
Dates: Created 2002/05/21; Completed 2002/06/12; Revised 2006/11/15;
PMID: 12021685, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)
Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.
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