Consumer Cost-Sharing Methods Vary Widely Across Health Insurance Marketplace Plans

Health plans sold through the federally facilitated health insurance Marketplace use a variety of cost sharing structures to provide the 10 essential health benefits and free preventive services for a premium that meets the Marketplace actuarial requirements. The variation extends across all four metal levels--Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum--for copayments, coinsurance, deductibles, and combinations for inpatient facility services, inpatient physician services, outpatient physician services, prescription medications, and emergency room visits.

These findings were reported in “Patient Cost-Sharing in Marketplace Plans, 2016” by Matthew Rae, Larry Levitt, Gary Claxton, Cynthia Cox, Michelle Long, and Anthony Damico of the . . .