Why Is Health Insurance Co-Pays So High?
Health insurance co-pays are higher now than at any other point in time, a reflection of rising service costs and administrative fees for medical professionals. Doctors, nurses, technicians and other office staff are taking the initiative in finding insurances that pay the highest reimbursement. Essentially, in addition to the cost of goods related to health care and medical services, health insurance co-pays are so high due in large part to the wages of those in health care fields.
Products, Technology and Service-Related Fees
Medical supply providers are able to charge a premium for many of their goods as a result of little competition in the market with a willingness to drive prices down. Insurances recognize the differences in cost of different medical procedures and will charge applicable co-payments based on the total cost of any product or technology involved. The insurance companies are, in fact, searching for profit-margins like any other major corporation. By limiting the amount they put towards a particularly expensive or time-consuming procedure, the insurance company protects themselves somewhat from the rising cost of medical supplies and services. The patient will be held responsible for a larger portion of the overall cost (co-payment), with reimbursement amounts kept low by the provider (insurance).
Medical Professionals Driving Health Insurance Co-pays High
There has been an increased amount of exposure related to medical professionals and their role in driving health insurance co-pays so high. Doctor’s offices will often be contracted with a select group of insurance providers in an effort to control the reimbursement they receive for services provided. The greater the reimbursement a medical office receives, the greater the checks that are issued to all personnel employed at a facility. If a medical provider does not contract as a preferred physician with a particular insurance company, that insurance is void and the claim would need to be paid in full with not reimbursement from the insurance provider. Occasionally, a patient may be forced to pay a deductible which, though referred to as member responsibility (mistaken for co-payment), is actually 100% of the total cost of any product or service.
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