Individual Marketplaces’ Narrow Networks Are Shutting Patients Out From Best Doctors
Plans with lower premiums often lower costs by limiting choices of doctors and hospitals.
Bloomberg:
Low-Cost Health Insurance Limits Access To Top Cancer Doctors
The nation’s top cancer doctors are more likely to be excluded from low-cost health insurance plans offered on the nation’s individual market, potentially crimping access to the highest-quality care for Americans when they need it most, a new study found. The individual exchanges, opened in 2014 as part of the Affordable Care Act, often include lower-cost policies that limit the number of physicians available to members as a way to cut costs. Those “narrow networks” are becoming more prevalent in Obamacare, as insurers seek ways to offer cheaper coverage, according to McKinsey & Co. The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology and examined data from 2014. (Cortez and Tracer, 7/5)
Philly.com:
Penn Study: Cheaper Insurance Plans May Exclude Top Cancer Doctors
Lesley Glenn didn’t question the aggressive treatment plan that a community oncology group recommended when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012 at age 47. But after the Chino Hills, Calif., resident suffered a life-threatening complication, she transferred her care — with permission from her health insurer — to USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, one of the nation’s top cancer hospitals. Doctors there put her on the path to where she is today, with no evidence of her advanced cancer. (McCullough, 7/5)
