There are inadequate consumer protections from harmful medical billing practices that result in unavoidable, unexpected, and often financially devastating medical bills. The problem stems from increasing cost shifting to patients underway in American health care and the inordinate complexity...

In recent years, consumer choice has become an important element of public policy. One reason is that consumers differ in their tastes and needs, which they can express most easily through their own choices. Elements that strengthen consumer choice feature prominently in the design of public...

The effects of television advertising in the market for health insurance are of distinct interest to both firms and regulators. Regulators are concerned about firms potentially using ads to "cream skim," or attract an advantageous risk pool, as well as the potential for firms to use...

Cover -- Half Title -- Title -- Copyright -- CONTENTS -- Introduction: Another Book About Healthcare? -- Part I: WHEN MEDICAL MARKETS MEET HUMAN NATURE -- Chapter 1: Can Americans Shop Their Way to More Affordable Care? -- Chapter 2: Shopping in the Dark -- Chapter 3: Who's in Charge? The...

This paper provides field evidence on (a) how price framing affects consumers' decision to switch health insurance plans and (b) how the price elasticity of demand for health insurance can be influenced by policymakers through simple regulatory efforts. In 2009, in order to foster competition...

The body of research on how consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs) affect the use and costs of health care services -- while still relatively small -- is growing. In recent work, the Employee Benefit Research Institute has examined these relationships using panel data from a large employer that...

This paper explores differences in choice of health plan using data from the 2009 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey. It examines the likelihood of having a choice of plan by various demographics and work-related variables. It also examines choice by health status and health...

The paper addresses efficiency and inequality issues under the conditions of increasing competition in the health care sector in Russia. Co-existence of state-funded mandatory and market-based voluntary medical insurance as well as high proportion of direct out-of-pocket payments create the...

This paper examines satisfaction with various aspects of health care by type of health plan among three groups of health-plan enrollees: those with a consumer-driven health plan (CDHP), those with a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), and those with traditional coverage. The findings presented...