High-deductible health care plans have become increasingly popular in recent years, but new research suggests that participants may be confused about their benefits.

Researchers at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) conducted a systematic review of the relationship between HDHPs and use of health care services.The results of the study, to be published this month in Health Affairs journal, examined and complied the findings of 28 other studies.  Overall, use of medical services was down among HDPH plan participants, but that also included routine health services such as wellness visits and cancer screenings.

"For high-deductible health plans to work in the ideal, patients need to be educated on the fact that preventive care does not usually incur out-of-pocket costs in these types of plans," says Nir Menachemi, one of the paper’s authors. "Traditional insurance plans shield patients from all of the financial decisions that are made. The fact that you are shielded financially from health care decisions makes you potentially more likely to over-consume services, which raises the average of care for everyone and increases premiums for everyone."

While one of the goals of HDHP plans is to encourage consumers to make more cost-conscious health care decisions, the results of the study suggest that patients still need some guidance on making the best use of the services offered under such plans.