Survey: Health savings accounts pick up steam but remain a small part of health insurance market

A new survey finds that health reimbursements and health savings accounts are picking up steam but still remain a small piece of the national insurance market. Meanwhile, leaders in the Texas health insurance and delivery system agree that paying for value in health care, rather than volume, is key. Finally, maternity insurance continues to be a challenge for some consumers.

Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel: High-Deductible Health Care Plans Growing, But Slowly
The number of people covered by health plans that include a health savings or reimbursement account continues to grow but remains a relatively small piece of the overall market nationally, according to a new survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute in Washington, D.C. (Boulton, 12/12).

The Dallas Morning News: Texas Health Resources, Blue Cross Leaders Agree Paying For Value, Not Volume, Of Care Is Key
Dallas is one of the nation's highest-spending metro areas on a per patient basis. One reason for our expensive health care is that up to a third of residents don't have health insurance, and the number is rising (Roberson, 12/12). In accompanying articles, The Dallas Morning News features Q&A's with the president of Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Texas and the chief executive of Texas Health Resources hospital system.

Los Angeles Times: Maternity Insurance Is Scarce And Expensive For Many Californians
Tens of thousands of California women find themselves in similar straits, struggling to find — and afford — maternity coverage. While many young adults are covered by employer-based insurance, motherhood can be a huge financial blow to those who are self-employed or work at businesses with no coverage for workers (Helfand, 12/12).

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This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.