Health coverage is expensive- both for individuals and for companies that provide it.
The costs affect much of the medical www cbdpost us, including drug prices, cost of coverage,
costs of care and visits, and a myriad of other areas of the health industry. Part of
those costs is resulting from the administrative handling of health insurance logistics,
and those costs affect the rest of the field, too.
According to studies in the field, noted by the CAQH Index, in 2019 they noted that
“SPENDING ON HEALTHCARE ADMINISTRATION COSTS AN ESTIMATED
$350 BILLION ANNUALLY IN THE UNITED STATES DUE TO IT’S
COMPLEXITY.”
Data from the 2019 CAQH Index indicates that $40.6 billion or 12 percent of the
$350 billion spent on administrative complexity, is associated with conducting
administrative transactions tracked by the CAQH Index. Of the $40.6 billion spent on
these transactions, $13.3 billion or 33 percent of existing annual spending on
administrative transactions could be saved by completing the transition from manual
and partially electronic processing to fully electronic processing. The progress that
the industry has already made to automate these administrative transactions has
saved the industry over $102 billion annually.”
Administration is, of course, an important aspect of any industry, especially one as
complex as medical and related fields. The difficulty with modern health insurance
means extensive administrative hours as they tend to a myriad of issues on multiple
fronts. This means, as noted earlier, a great deal of expense that filters throughout
the medical field.
Unfortunately, small business owners tend to bear the brunt of these costs, at least
when it comes to businesses rather than people. As noted here,
“NOT SURPRISINGLY, THE COST OF PROVIDING HEALTH COVERAGE TO
EMPLOYEES LOOMS LARGER THE SMALLER THE BUSINESS,
BUT THIS ISSUE PLAGES BUSINESSES REGARDLESS OF SIZE”
The price tag on health insurance is a significant pain point for small employers. The
problem extends to recruiting and retaining talent, as well. To compete with larger
employers, small employers are hard-pressed to offer benefits like health insurance,
even as the benefit takes up a larger share of the bottom line. Two-thirds of
businesses (69%) said the problem has been getting worse. They reported that costs
have increased over the last four years; one-third of this group reported annual
increases of 10 percent or more. Businesses with fewer employees cited bigger
increases than larger businesses. Employers cited prescription drugs and lack of
choice of health care plans as pain points.
