Patient Power

Stossel - Sick in America, Part 5

Continued from Part 4.

Topics:

• High deductibles are good.  Whole Foods example.  Whole Foods contributes to employees’ Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), which accumulates and grows over time. (Speech my Whole Foods CEO on this topic.
• Do HSAs discourage patients from getting preventive care?  Many policies cover preventive care, and it gives patients incentives to keep costs down.
•  Shopping around for a physical exam.  When patients pay their own money, they start asking: “What am I getting for my money?”  Customers start inquiring about quality and price, providers respond by paying attention.
• Is health care “too complicated” to let patents decide?  Should government decide whether parents have kids?  Do only people who are knowledgeable about cars by cars?
• Competition creates a market for products that inform customers, like Consumer Reports, Carol.com, HealthGrades.com, and Vimo.com.

• Stossel, Sick in America, Part 2
• How to argue for Health Savings Accounts
• Wendy’s employees save with HSAs
• Employers & employees save big with HSAs
• Stossel, Sick in America, Part 4