Value-based insurance design helps patients improve medication adherence, but the method does not cut costs, according to a study in Health Affairs.
VBID improves adherence by eliminating financial barriers to obtaining medication. The study examined Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina's VBID program, which started in 2008.
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Patients in the study experienced lowered or eliminated payments for some medications. Despite better adherence, however, improved disease management did not lower cost as was expected to occur. In addition while hospital admissions decreased, emergency department use and health expenditures did not decrease.
Researchers suggests VBID isn't cost neutral in the short term, and long-term studies are necessary to determine the effect of the practice over time.
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