Health Care Reform Survey: Costs Are Top Worry

Monday, March 10, 2008

Leesburg, Va. — Consumers have an important role to play in making needed changes in American health care, but they are pessimistic that reform will happen in the next 10 years, according to a new national consumer survey on health care and reform options.

Survey results were released today at the second Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center National Symposium on Health Care Reform, in Leesburg, Va. The policy center sponsored the survey to solicit feedback from the public about their views on health care and potential reform options. The online survey was conducted by Harris Interactive from Dec. 14 to 21, 2007, on behalf of the Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center. It included 1,018 U.S. residents. Participants were 25 to 75 years old and were involved in making health care decisions for their households.

Respondents were asked about 23 different health care reform ideas. Many ideas had been developed through the Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center over the last two years. In a series of events, the Health Policy Center has brought together more than 400 patients and leaders from business, health care, government, academia and patient advocacy to find common ground for patient-centered change.

Resoundingly, respondents said health care costs are too high and change is needed. Less than half (43 percent) of respondents said they were satisfied, very satisfied or completely satisfied with health care in America as it is practiced today. Nearly 80 percent agreed that it was very important to increase the quality of health care and reduce costs.

But 66 percent felt these changes were unlikely to occur in the next 10 years.

"That pessimism doesn't mean that consumers were just throwing up their hands," says Robert Smoldt, executive director of the Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center. "The reform ideas that resonated most showed that Americans want the information, tools, and access to providers to better manage their own health."

The most favored reform options, with between 70 percent and 79 percent of respondents ranking them as extremely important or very important were:

Patients should be able to obtain accurate and complete information on their own health. Patients should have freedom of choice when they select doctors, hospitals and insurance. No one should be denied health insurance due to a pre-existing condition.

Efforts to improve the American health care should increase efficiency and decrease waste. While insurers, health care providers and Congress were noted as most likely to effect health care change, three in 10 respondents said consumers have the best potential to make change happen.

"Consumers ranked themselves as more likely to make change happen than the U.S. president," says Smoldt. "That's an especially interesting finding during an election year." Hospitals, state legislators and large employers were even further down the list.

The most cited barriers to achieving reform were politics, insurers, costs, and too much government involvement. Insurance companies, ranked second as a barrier to change, were cited most often as the group able to influence change.

Other key findings from the survey:

Health care costs: Overwhelmingly, costs were the most pressing concern. The vast majority of all respondents (91 percent) said health care costs are too high. Nearly all (99 percent) of uninsured respondents believed health care costs are too high. Consumers at the highest income level (more than $75,000 annually) were most critical of high costs.

Without prompting, 54 percent identified some form of cost pressure as the most important concern in health care today. Concerns regarding access to care were a distant second, with 24 percent listing availability of health care as the most pressing concern.

Government involvement: According to survey findings, most American adults believe the government should not play too active a role in health care. Just 32 percent of respondents said it is very or extremely important for the government to play an important role in oversight.

Mandated health insurance: Government may have a role to play in requiring health insurance. Just under half of respondents believed that it was very important or extremely important that all Americans should be required to have health insurance, with financial assistance available for those with lower incomes. An additional 23 percent rated this idea as important.

Taxes: A large majority of respondents rejected the idea of a tax increase to pay for reform. Only 15 percent favored paying more taxes.

Presidential election and health care: Health care was ranked as the second most important issue that a new president should address. The war in Iraq was No. 1, and terrorism was No. 3. (Note: This survey was conducted prior to a significant decline in the stock market.) Respondents said they weren't likely to vote for a presidential candidate based solely on health care.

Twenty percent said they will not consider a candidate's position on health care in their voting decision. The vast majority will consider health care along with many other issues in making their decision.

Health and insurance status: Survey results consistently showed that respondents don't speak with one voice. Findings highlighted differences of opinions based on health and insurance status. Nearly half of respondents were dealing with a chronic health condition requiring ongoing care. Twelve percent were uninsured.

The uninsured, more than others, rated these areas poorly: coordination of care, access to care and value. Those with poorer health were more likely to express dissatisfaction with American health care as it exists today. Those with a fair or poor health status assigned the highest priority to health care as a critical issue facing the next president.

View the presentation at: http://healthpolicyblog.mayoclinic.org/2008/03/10/your-voice-new-vision/.

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