Plan members express interest in health exchange

With health exchange enrollment just months away, many states are taking measures to implement resourceful websites, customer service call centers and other outlets of information to help residents understand how their benefits marketplace will work.

A recent study of healthcare consumers in 17 regions throughout the United States found 73 percent of respondents who purchase their own coverage rather than through their employer said they definitely or probably will shop for a plan on a state exchange. According to the J.D. Power and Associates 2013 Member Health Plan Study, high-deductible plan members were more likely to voice interest in the benefits marketplace than low-deductible plan members, probably because the former are looking for ways to cut costs.

Service quality was also a common drive among those who said they were very likely to shop on the exchange, 60 percent of whom reported contacting their health plan regarding a problem in the past year.

Among all healthcare users in both individual and group plans, respondents who were not offered insurance options by their employer were more likely to consider purchasing on the exchange. However, a significant portion of those receiving benefits from a small employer said they will consider seeking cheaper options on the online marketplace.