In a world where we price shop for nearly everything, healthcare expenses are no exception. The average consumer is becoming more aware of the inflated healthcare costs and starting to demand transparency. Unfortunately, it isn’t pretty. The ugly truth about healthcare costs is coming to light and you might be a little uneasy about it. Here’s 15 statistics about U.S. health costs that will blow your mind.
- Approximately 1 out of every 5 dollars will be spent on healthcare in the U.S. by 2024.
- 9 out of 10 consumers are demanding to know their payment responsibility beforehand rather than receiving surprise medical bills in the mail.
- Mobile payment systems are on the rise. Over 75% of consumers pay their household bills through online payment channels and they are interested in using mobile payment systems for medical expenses.
- Surprise healthcare bills in the mail are affecting 87% of consumers.
- Apparently, consumers are pretty old school. 96% of patients still write checks in order to pay for their medical expenses.
- Nearly 77% of consumers reported being confused by the exact coverage of their healthcare plan and 76% were blindsided by the charges from their healthcare provider.
- In 2015, the healthcare payment market was estimated to be worth an astounding 3.3 trillion dollars.
- Deductibles have sky rocketed by 255% since 2006 and family coverage has seen an 83% rise in their health insurance premium.
- In 2015, nearly 74% of providers saw a spike in patient financial responsibility due to the rising costs of health care and high deductible plans.
- Providers only count on receiving 50-70% of a patient’s balance once they leave the office. The increase in patient responsibility was a result of providers having a difficult time collecting outstanding balances.
- Approximately 70% of providers typically expect one month or longer to receive payment from a patient.
- Each U.S. consumer is projected to spend nearly $10,000 on healthcare costs this year.
- By 2021, the United States is projected to spend nearly $4.8 trillion on healthcare costs. Just to give a you a reference point, healthcare spending was $2.6 trillion in 2010 and $75 billion in 1970. Talk about more money more problems.
- Due to the steep costs of health insurance premium, only 50% of small businesses with less than 10 employees offered coverage to their workers in 2012.
- Debt collectors are currently spending a decent amount of their time chasing after medical bills. Apparently, 40% of debt collection is seeking balances on medical bills.
The hard part is over! Learning about the ugly truth of healthcare costs isn’t easy, but now you can fight back against falling into these hefty medical traps. By demanding transparency and price shopping around, you can save your pockets the pain of enduring steep prices. If you’re in need of a medical procedure, simply use Save On Medical’s price transparency tool to find the cheapest option in your area. We make it easy, so you don’t have to stress.
