A recent NYT article exploring the rollout of the Affordable Care Act has found that the cost of coverage and lack of technical knowledge kept many from selecting an insurance plan this year. Many of those profiled in the article did not qualify for federal subsidiaries, or felt like their award would not cover the cost of the plan.
According to a December poll, half of all uninsured individuals cited cost as their main reason to neglect the new legislation. About one third objected to the government requiring a plan, and only one in ten stated that the felt they did not need any plan. After a surge of late sign ups, the Affordable Car Act currently covers eight million Americans, exceeding expectations. Now that the March 31 sign up date has passed, the administration continues to struggle to find new strategies to improve public opinion regarding the program.
One of the Times' article subjects is a 57-year-old salesman from Louisville, Kentucky named Steve Huber. Huber admits to trying to register on the website multiple times before finding it too complicated and giving up in frustration. Huber recently changed professions and took a sizable pay cut, and was not sure he could manage another expense. "I realize that I'm gambling, but I don't have a lot of patience, and I'm on a pretty tight budget anyway." he explained to the Times about his situation. When asked about the tax penalty, which is a minimum of $95 for the uninsured, he remarked that the IRS could "get in line."
So far, Huber's medical bills have reached $1,100 in uncovered payments from a hospital visit last fall, and the article reports that he takes his blood pressure medication only half the time he was instructed to by his doctor. Healthcare management administrators that are trying to close outstanding accounts may want to look into outsourcing accounts receivable services.