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WASHINGTON, DC—Today the Center for American Progress Action Fund releases a report titled “Coverage When It Counts: How Much Protection Does Health Insurance Offer and How Can Consumers Know?” The report’s authors, Karen Pollitz, Eliza Bangit, Jennifer Libster, Stephanie Lewis, and Nicole Johnston, summarize findings of two reports that studied the adequacy and transparency of health insurance in Massachusetts and California. Those reports suggest a new method for developing benchmarks to illustrate types and costs of medical care under a variety of scenarios, and for evaluating insurance protection using these benchmarks. Using simulated claims scenarios for different types of patients the authors analyzed the content of coverage under a variety of health insurance policies sold to individuals and small employers in Massachusetts and California and estimated out-of-pocket costs for care that patients might face. They also reviewed the transparency and accessibility of information that consumers would need to understand how coverage works.
Their recommendations include developing standardized health plan comparison tools—patterned on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration nutrition label, but for health insurance—that could help consumers appreciate the kinds of medical events for which health insurance may be needed and relative levels of protection provided under different policies.
Download the full report (pdf)
Download the executive summary (pdf)
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