There's been a lot of debate over the country's health care system. But there's one fact nearly everyone agrees on: Health care costs are too damn high.
It's a simple fact with a lot of repercussions.
For one, more employers are shifting away from full health plans toward high-deductible, lower-cost coverage. More and more employers are having their employees foot more of the bill. Some are dropping coverage altogether.
For small firms alone, according to the National Federation of Independent Business, health insurance costs for small firms have risen a whopping 103 percent in the last decade, an increase outpacing wages and inflation—and rendering insurance unaffordable for many small-business owners.
Of course, rising premiums and other health expenditures have had a major impact on the average Joe. Health care costs are increasing at a much faster rate than workers' incomes and the rate of inflation.
Medical expenses remain the No. 1 reason for bankruptcies in theUnited States. And, according to a study in the American Journal of Medicine, among those bankruptcies, 78 percent of the individuals had health insurance.
Consulting firm Aon Hewitt says the amount employers spend on health care has increased by 40 percent in the past six years to roughly $8,800 per employee. Meanwhile, employee premium and out-of-pocket costs have increased 64 percent to almost $5,000 per year. Aon Hewitt estimates health care costs for both employers and employees will continue to rise 8 percent to 9 percent per year for the foreseeable future.
Ever-rising medical costs is the one ongoing issue that has affected or inspired nearly every major health trend—wellness programs, self-insured plans, consumer-driven health care, health reform—the list goes on.
It's also the issue that's probably spurred the most debate regarding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
While driving down health care costs was a major intention of President Obama's health reform law—after all, affordable is right there in the name—it's been a major point of contention between supporters and opponents of the law.
For the most part, the health insurance industry has argued that health costs are still a large and unresolved issue that is not being addressed by the law. They say a combination of factors—the health insurance tax, the age rating provision, the medical device tax, the cost of implementation and marketing—will drive up premiums.
“The nation must also address the soaring cost of medical care that is driving up the cost of coverage, taking up a greater share of federal and state budgets, and threatening the long-term solvency of our nation's public safety net programs,” America's Health Insurance Plans President and CEO Karen Ignagni said shortly after Obama's reelection.
For its part, the administration has said that health reform will benefit most Americans, and in the long-term, will drive health care costs down.
Of course, that remains to be seen.
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