Thursday, June 11, 1998

Health plan details

Back when health costs were soaring further into space than the Hubbell telescope can peer, some health-care organizations and insurance plans responded by holding down at least some costs by holding down at least some services.

Now many patients who aren't getting what they used to are complaining, and a number of politicians in Washington are threatening to intervene, which could be disastrous. Trying to tell a business from long distance what it must offer and at what price can never conceivably work.

But one idea that's part of most so-called reform plans does make sense, and that's to require the insurance companies and employers to spell out in easily understood detail just what the plans do cover.

Right now, according to a study by the General Accounting Office, most plans fall far short of the recommendations of a president-appointed group that issued a report earlier this year.

If employees understood better what they were getting and what their options were, they would probably complain less later and they would make better choices in the first place.

A problem would remain, however. Most insurance plans are offered through employers because it is employers that get a tax break, and the number of options are seldom great. By putting individuals on an equal tax-footing with the companies, people would have a larger number of affordable possibilities to pick from.

Unfortunately, that true reform is not likely to take place soon. But this congressional session should see a law mandating that more information about health plans be made available.