By Monica E. Oss, Chief Executive Officer Out-of-pocket (OOP) health costs for U.S. consumers decreased between 2000 and 2014 (see Out-Of-Pocket Health Costs Decreased For All Age Groups Between 2000 & 2014). Given the coverage of the topic in the popular press and in our political discourse, these findings did surprise me – Out-Of-Pocket Costs Based On List Prices, The Next Obamacare Battleground: Subsidies For Out-Of-Pocket Costs, and Higher Copayments And Deductibles Delay Medical Care, A Common Problem For Americans. The real story was hidden in these reported “averages.” The OOP decrease among older adults covered by both Medicare and Medicaid decreased by 69.5%, from $1,253 in…