November 22, 2022
Dr. Joe DeStefano of Urgent Care 24/7 discusses how direct care is more affordable care.
Since the Affordable Care Act was passed in 2010, Americans have seen competition in the health insurance marketplace eliminated, and now only 4 insurance products are available: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. By law, each of these plans must have the same structure as the other, at every level. In effect, that’s like GMC, Ford, and Toyota manufacturing and selling the exact same cars.
With this system, we have seen the “Big Three” insurance companies—Aetna, UHC, and BCBS—steadily increase their deductibles. As of 2021, 29% of all employers had a single-person deductible of $2000 or more. In 2019, Deductible Freedom Day (the day of the year when the average deductible is met for everyone insured under the plan), fell on May 19th. But that deductible has been rising at 3% annually, pushing Deductible Freedom Day back to June 1st in 2022, almost 3 weeks later.
Other data pulled from 2015, the last year complete information was available, show that 80% of non-chronically ill patients never reach their deductible. With the dramatic increase in deductibles in the last 7 years that number, if measured today, would no doubt be much higher.
In 2021, the average out-of-pocket cost for an employee covered under the plans in the “Unaffordable Care Act” was $16,253 dollars, which means insurers were collecting an average of $22,221 per covered person and over 80% of the time never paying a claim out of the insurance fund!
Consider that casinos in Las Vegas Slots are only allowed to win 56% of the time. The worst odds allowed in a casino are 76% house wins in Keno! The insurance lobby has built a system in which a casino playing these odds would not be allowed to operate and remember, a casino is paying with their money, not their “members.”
Direct care is more affordable care! Pricing at Urgent Care 24/7 is transparent and offers a better “discount” than the expensive discount card insurance companies are offering.
References:
2021 employer health benefits survey - summary of findings. Kaiser Family Foundation. (2021, November 10). Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://www.kff.org/report-section/ehbs-2021-summary-of-findings/
Hannum, R. (2019). Casino Mathematics. UNLV Center for Gaming Research: Casino Mathematics. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://gaming.library.unlv.edu/casinomath.html
Rae, M., Young, G., Claxton, G., Wager, E., & Amin, K. (2022, March 10). Many households do not have enough money to pay cost-sharing typical in private health plans. Kaiser Family Foundation. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://www.kff.org/health-costs/issue-brief/many-households-do-not-have-enough-money-to-pay-cost-sharing-typical-in-private-health-plans/
Ryan, C. (2015, January 14). Most exchange enrollees will never reach deductible. American Action Forum. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://www.americanactionforum.org/weekly-checkup/most-exchange-enrollees-will-never-reach-deductible/
.webp)
I sit down on Zoom with Dr. Jerry Williams. Jerry is an author, screenwriter, entrepreneur, and board certified neurologist.
%20(1).png)
Urgent Care 24/7 opened its first location here on March 1 at 1726 E. Seventh St. It offers a range of services.
Meet Dr. Jerry Williams: Doctor - Author - Entrepreneur - Inventor - Historian.
Urgent Care 24/7 is committed to providing quality health care for the whole family! Offering urgent care, primary care, virtual care, and Covid-care treatment services with access 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year!
