Implications of Patient Pays Educational Video

Video #4 in the Healthcare Payments Educational Video Series

Former Health and Human Services Secretary and Governor of Wisconsin, Tommy Thompson is interviewed by healthcare payments expert, Mark Brousseau, President of Brousseau & Associates in Q&A Session #4.

Gov. Thompson talks about how patient responsibility may increase out of pocket expenses for the individual. If the end result is not “extreme”, this will be a positive influencer to the healthcare process and reduce excessive procedures, therein reducing costs within the process because there will be less denials.

Patients are scrutinizing their procedures and costs associated more and more, as they have “skin in the game”. A cautious patient/consumer will be a better buyer of healthcare moving forward.

Supporting statistics by CMS, National Health Expenditure projections from 2010-2020 include:

• Out-of-pocket spending is projected to grow 3.9 percent in 2013, up from 1.8 percent in 2010, as growth in household incomes is expected to lead to more healthcare spending and as employers are anticipated to increase cost-sharing requirements in employer-sponsored insurance plans.
• In 2014, out-of-pocket spending is projected to decline by 1.3 percent, as coverage expansions through Medicaid and the Health Insurance Exchanges lead to greater spending through insurance and reductions in costs paid out-of-pocket.
• Out-of-pocket spending growth is projected to grow at an average rate of 5.0 percent from 2015 through 2020.
• In 2014, overall health spending is projected to grow 8.3 percent. This projected acceleration in the growth rate, up from 5.5 percent in 2013, is primarily the result of the Affordable Care Act’s coverage-related expansions.

Visit cms.gov to see the full report: https://www.cms.gov/. To view this new video in the healthcare payments educational video series, visit our website at: http://www.orbograph.com/healthcare-payments-educational-video-series.htm.