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Out-of-pocket health costs rising, but not that much

. In 2017, more than half of all insured American workers had health insurance with a deductible exceeding $1,000 thats almost twice as many as had such policies when Obamacare passed. But thats not all thats changed.

By Peter R. Orszag, Ezekiel J. Emanuel | Updated on January 04, 2018
The perception of ever higher out-of-pocket health-care costs obscures important facts about health care spending. (Photo: Shutterstock)

“Dad, I got a bill for $1,113.” One of our daughters was incensed. “I went to my doctor with a simple question. She sent me downstairs where they drew a few tubes of blood for tests. It took two minutes. How do I owe over $1,000?”

She’s not the only one outraged by out-of-pocket health costs in the U.S. Many of us feel we are paying more for less and less insurance coverage. We blame high-deductible plans, rising co-pays and other policies that seem to shift more costs onto patients. Headlines such as “Out-of-pocket health spending in 2016 increased at the fastest rate in a decade” amplify the unhappiness.

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