Confusing, frustrating medical bills are prompting patients to skip routine healthcare, a survey of more than 1,000 Americans revealed.
It found 53 percent of respondents have received an unexpected medical bill in the last year. Of those respondents, 60 percent received higher-than-expected bills; 62 percent received bills for care believed to be covered by insurance but wasn't; and 42 percent received multiple bills from multiple providers instead of one bill as anticipated.
The September survey was conducted through a partnership between Hanover Research, an independent research and analytics firm, and HealthSparq, provider of treatment transparency and guidance tools available through U.S. health plans.
After receiving bills that frustrated them, 40 percent of respondents said they skipped routine checkups; 39 percent said they skipped a routine physical or other preventive healthcare screening; and 39 percent said they skipped care when they (or a family member) were injured.
Read more about the survey here.
More articles on healthcare finance:
Spending on California ballot initiatives over hospital charges exceeds $7M
California spent $4B on Medi-Cal coverage for potentially ineligible people, audit finds
Mississippi hospitals end Medicare Advantage agreements over declining reimbursement