Out-of-pocket expenses for households with employer-sponsored insurance grew faster than overall health spending during the decade that ended in 2013, according to an analysis of medical bills for workers with health benefits from self-insured employers.
The analysis (PDF), by consulting and data company Truven Health Analytics, excludes capitated plans but nonetheless covers one-quarter of the U.S. population.
The drag on household finances from higher medical bills comes as U.S. workers continue to cope with weak wage growth. That raises concerns about to what degree the financial stress will prompt individuals to forgo medical care to avoid out-of-pocket expenses.
Household spending, deductibles and other bills not covered by health plans grew at an annual compounded rate of 5.7% during the decade, outpacing the compounded annual growth rate of 5.2% for total spending for the same period.
Among the oldest adults in the workforce—those ages 45 to 64—the growth of health plans with high deductibles may have prompted a shift in the use of healthcare, the report said. Adults with children delayed seeking care for themselves as the economy faltered in recent years, but continued to seek care for their children, according to the report. “In short, the demand for child health services from a middle-class, privately insured population is less elastic than demand for adult care.”
The data also captured the spike in prescription drug spending as new blockbuster hepatitis C drugs entered the market. In the final three months of 2013 and the first half of 2014, new spending on Sovaldi and Olysio accounted for 3.3% of total drug spending. Per capita drug spending growth easily outpaced spending for inpatient services or ambulatory care during the first half of last year, preliminary data show.
The analysis echoes federal estimates and projections for U.S. health spending. Proliferation of high-deductible health plans have been cited as a factor behind the moderate growth in health spending since the recession. Drug spending in 2014 was projected to accelerate to 6.8% from 2.5% in 2013, thanks in part to the hepatitis C drugs and those newly insured under Obamacare.
Follow Melanie Evans on Twitter: @MHmevans
