Abstract
Consumer-Directed Health Plans (CDHPs) are proposed as an option to control healthcare costs. No research has addressed their applicability in rural settings. This study analyzes three years (2003–2005) of healthcare expenditure and utilization incurred by two employers and a national carrier providing data from a rural state, Kentucky. The study included two measures of expenditures (health care and prescription drugs) and three measures of utilization (physician visits, hospital admissions, and hospital inpatient days). In general, the CDHP successfully controlled the growth of medical costs. These findings suggest that CDHPs may be a viable alternative benefit structure for rural employers.
Disciplines
Community Health and Preventive Medicine | Public Health | Public Health Education and Promotion
Recommended Repository Citation
Watkins, Cecilia M.; White, J.; Duncan, D.; Wyant, D.; Nicholson, T.; Khubchandani, J.; and Lakshminarayana, C.. (2010). Consumer-Directed Health Insurance vs. Managed Care: Analysis of Health Care Utilization and Expenditure Incurred by Employees in a Rural Area. Research in the Sociology of Health Care, 28, 197-214.
Original Publication URL: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/S0275-4959%282010%290000028011
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/public_hlth_fac_pub/14
Included in
Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons, Public Health Education and Promotion Commons
Comments
Originally Published Research In The Sociology of Health Care. 2010; 28:197-214. DOI: 10.1108/S0275-4959(2010)0000028011
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