Tiered Health Care Catches On

This article goes over an issue that insurance companies are using to deal with the rising cost of prescription drugs. The problem of health care in this country is not that our health care is not good, it is that it costs too much. The most expensive aspect of the health system is prescription drugs. As a result, the copayments are getting higher and higher for drugs that can be as expensive as 1000 dollars a month. If you don't take those drugs, you still must pay for the benefits which raises your monthly premium. To keep the premiums down, insurance companies make the copayments for these drugs higher. This article goes into the discussion on this new issue.

Tiered Health Care Catches On

Health insurance companies are shifting the cost of expensive prescription drugs on to patients, part of a larger trend toward "tiered" private health insurance coverage. Although employers support these measures, vulnerable patients are being exposed to great financial risks.

Health insurers are struggling to adapt to surging health care costs in the U.S. The newest development in private health insurance is the introduction of a fourth tier of cost sharing ("Tier 4") in prescription drug coverage.

Insurance tiering requires patients to bear an increasing share of the costs of care. The system is attractive to employers who sponsor health plans and to employees in good health, but it can be very costly for those who become chronically ill.

Continue reading the article here.