title: Tiered hospital networks.
abstract: As a result of rising health care costs, health plans are experimenting with insurance products that shift greater financial responsibility for medical care to consumers and create incentives for consumers to consider cost differences when choosing among providers. Based on an October 2002 roundtable discussion, this paper discusses insurance product trends, particularly tiered hospital networks. Issues addressed include these product features' potential to reduce system costs, the effect on the hospital-health plan relationship, consumers' ability to consider cost and quality in decision making, and financial barriers to care for the chronically ill.
authors.affiliation: California HealthCare Foundation, Oakland, USA.
authors.forename: Jill M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Yegian
mesh_terms: D003258:Consumer Behavior / Q000191:economics*; D017047:Cost Sharing; D019033:Delivery of Health Care, Integrated / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D017721:Hospital Costs; D006761:Hospitals / Q000145:classification* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007350:Insurance, Hospitalization / Q000639:trends*; D008329:Managed Care Programs / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014481:United States