BOSTON — As the annual benefits enrollment season is underway, a recent Fidelity Investments survey finds that employers still need to work on their plan educations efforts. The research explored U.S. workers' health care planning attitudes and behavior as well as their knowledge of basic health insurance terms and medical savings vehicles.
Although 61% of employees surveyed considered their general understanding of health care benefits terminology to be very good, the study revealed that in fact only 15% had a very strong understanding of key terms.
In addition, while 87% were able to identify what a "co-payment" was, only half of the respondents were able to identify a flexible spending account or a health reimbursement account, two tax-advantaged medical account vehicles available through employers today. Some 56% of the respondents also could not correctly identify a Health Savings Account.
For employees, cost of monthly premiums ranks as the leading factor in choosing health plans. Premiums were followed by the amount of co-pay and co-insurance for doctor visits (29%), ability to access specific doctors (29%), annual deductible amounts (20%) and prescription coverage (20%). Among the least important factors were access to health education, health promotion and prevention, with just one percent of workers indicating these were important factors in choosing a plan.
Most workers (74%) without access to a consumer-driven health plan expressed no interest in having access. Even among workers who indicated that the cost of monthly premiums was a key factor in choosing their health plan, 71% said they were not interested in a CDHP. Some 21% of workers don't know if their employer offers a high deductible health plan option, the type of health insurance plan most associated with a consumer-driven health plan that generally offers lower monthly premiums.
The 24% of workers who did indicate interest in a CDHP were less likely to be very satisfied with their current health plan. This group was also younger with a higher level of education.
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