Consumer-directed health care and the courts: let the buyer (and seller) beware.
In consumer-directed health care, patients will be expected to exert greater control over their spending decisions than before. As consumer-directed care gains market acceptance, courts will inevitably be involved in resolving challenges to the new arrangements. We anticipate that courts will be generally favorable toward consumer-directed care, but the new legal doctrine will not uniformly favor medical professionals and insurers. The information demands inherent in consumer-directed care will present particular legal challenges to physicians and insurers. Even as courts provide flexibility to reflect the new market realities, they will closely monitor how consumer-directed care is implemented.
Jacobson
Peter D
PD
Department of Health Management and Policy and the School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA. pdj@umich.edu
Tunick
Michael R
MR
D003256:Community Participation / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D018588:Fee-for-Service Plans; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D016365:Liability, Legal; D008329:Managed Care Programs; D017146:Models, Organizational; D011640:Public Policy; D014481:United States