Survey Reveals Issues Navigating Health Insurance

1.5 minute read

According to a recent survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), 81% of insured adults feel excellent or good about their health insurance. However, 58% reported having at least one issue with their insurance including denied claims, trouble finding in-network providers, and delays or denials of care due to preauthorization.

Some Key Findings

• Adults with worse physical or mental health were more likely to report having problems with their health insurance. Seventy-four percent of individuals who received mental health treatment in the past year reported a problem.
• Many adults did not receive needed mental health services or medication. Forty percent skipped or delayed care in the past due to costs.
• Over 36% of insured adults struggled to understand their health insurance. Ninety percent of adults support policies to make insurance simpler to understand – including easier-to-read explanation of benefits, advanced notice of whether care is covered and out-of-pocket costs, disclosures of claim denial rates, and assistance to avoid or resolved insurance problems.

Employer Takeaway

Employees value having health care coverage, but many have issues when trying to use it. Those with poorer health, higher utilizers of care, and individuals who receive mental health care tend to have more problems.

Employers are uniquely positioned to help employees understand and effectively use their health plans. A better understanding may help employees increase their health care literacy and improve their health and well-being. Download the bulletin for more details.