If you are not covered, health insurance in the USA can seem out of reach. In 2009, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust revealed that the average cost of an employer sponsored health insurance plan was $5,791 for individuals and $13,375 for families. Because of the cost, many employers are cutting back on the coverage they are offering and asking the employees to pay a greater share of the premiums. Some workers, unable to cover the larger cut out of their paycheck, are opting to drop coverage. Others are only covering the employee, as most employers pay a greater percentage of their premium, and looking to purchase inexpensive plans or get government sponsored insurance for spouses and children.
Private policies range greatly in price and vary greatly in what is covered. Health insurance plans for individuals averaged $161 a month in 2009, according to eHealth, an online source for finding policies. The average family paid $383 a month. It's difficult to make a head to head comparison of private policies versus employee sponsored or group rate plans, as the coverage offered is not always the same and the pool of people covered varies, which can significantly lower or increase the rates.
Along with prohibitive cost, some individuals find it difficult, if not impossible to find an insurer willing to offer them a policy. Those with pre-existing conditions will often only be able to get a private policy that excludes coverage for their condition for a specified number of years. Those that are obese or smoke or have a history of mental illness also find it very difficult to find affordable coverage. States have insurance pools to insure those deemed "uninsurable" but those often have very high premiums, putting them out of reach for many.
Even those with insurance might find that they can't afford to use it, as they have plans with high deductibles, coinsurance rates and expensive co-pays. A $30-40 co-pay for a regular doctor's visit is not uncommon, with visits to specialists and urgent care clinics costing even more. Deductibles can be several thousands of dollars with a 20% coinsurance rate on top of that. It can be tempting to take the gamble and go without insurance for those whose only choice is a policy with very high out of pocket expenses before the coverage kicks in. Completely covered health care expenses are a relic of a different era of insurance.
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