I firmly believe that individuals CAN make better healthcare decisions IF the industry takes the lead in converting the complex, financially transaction-based vocabulary into an easier to understand and Consumer-based vocabulary and communications. As this year progresses, all indicators point to the notion that individuals (eg Consumers) are bearing more of the brunt of financial responsibility of their healthcare premiums and out-of-pocket expenses. The more that Consumers are paying, the more often they will ask questions, and hence refuse to pay until they understand the answers to their questions about amounts paid, services provided, and value received. An example of this maturation are elective procedures such as the corrective vision procedure known as Lasik. Lasik surgery is typically not covered by insurance and is an elective outpatient procedure that patients must pay the full cost out of their own pocket. The interesting aspect of this procedure is how it is marketed and communicated by Doctors and surgery centers. The messaging is very consumer-centric (confusing healthcare-speak is absent, thank goodness), what to expect before, after, and post procedure is clearly communicated, and how much it costs to get the procedure performed is known upfront and is all-inclusive. Obviously, not all healthcare services and procedures are as simple as Lasik, but if all healthcare Providers and Insurers tried to make as much of healthcare as easy to understand and pay for as Lasik is, healthcare consumerism and decision-making would be much further along than it is today. The U.S. healthcare system will realize a significant improvement of reduced patient and national cost by simply enabling healthcare to be more consumer-centric and easier to navigate thus creating the environment of a clearer answer to "what am i paying for and the value received?" Price transparency and price/service competition has historically driven down marketplace costs for all participants.

Unfortunately, there's so many aspects to consider and they all are competing for priority. However, the most pressing issue that has the nation fretting at the moment is the answer to who will be responsible for and/or controls the healthcare dollars that purchase healthcare services and products. Excluding Medicare and Medicaid, will it remain a market-based and predominantly employer-sponsored environment as it is today with some minor tweaks or will it evolve into a fully govt sponsored or partially govt sponsored environment? The answer to that fundamental question will determine all future decisions and actions of the healthcare eco-system's participants.

There needs to much more transparency and clarity around who is paying for XYZ portion of charges, how much was paid, and the patient's experience with that provider or product. (e.g. the basic ingredients needed to informed consumerism purchase decisions)

Ironically, no. Technology will be critical in supporting an acceleration of change. However, the main driver of change in the healthcare industry will remain in the hands of patients, caregivers, and the public who passionately and persistently demand that we step away from status quo.

Upset would be an understatement. Not in the cost of services (e.g. how expensive it might be) but rather the significant variability in net price paid for services across providers in the same town.

Anyone can and should want to become a better consumer of healthcare because we are all paying for healthcare either directly with money taken out of paycheck to pay for insurance premiums or indirectly via government and state taxes of which some portion goes to fund public healthcare. The ugly truth is that EVERYONE is already paying for healthcare. But the easiest and first step of becoming a good healthcare consumer is to simply ASK questions. Ask your doctor, pharmacists, insurance company, or anyone else you interest with. Usually, they won't know all of the answers to your questions, but keep pressing until you understand your options or whatever choices or decisions are presented to you. Questions are your most potent weapons you have.

After both of my parents passed away within a year of each other, I was left with boxes of papers and an awful lot of unanswered questions about who we owed, what we owed, and what was considered "reasonable". I had worked in the healthcare industry for my entire career and was both amazed and shocked at how screwed up things were from a caregiver and patient's perspective. It was from that epiphany that I vowed to try and help others avoid the unnecessary frustration and confusion that we faced.

A recent trend by small and mid-size businesses that has been reinforced by tough economic times is the notion of employees bearing more of the cost of their healthcare insurance and expenses (e.g. higher out-of-pocket expenses and deductibles)... the rationale behind that shift is that the more that individuals have to pay for their healthcare, the more frugal and/or selective they will become in accessing services and hence reduce unnecessary expenses. One important component that often gets lost or left off is the idea of coupling higher individual financial responsibility BUT ALSO increasing access to or REDUCING cost of preventative care services and maintenance medications that would help individuals avoid hospitalization because they couldn't afford or wrongly decided to skip therapy or medications to save money. Shifting costs for the short-term is not a panacea solution to our longer-term problems. There needs to be a balanced approach of increased access plus increased accountability.

As people enroll/are enrolled into insurance plans that have a prescription component designed to shift more financial responsibility to the individual, tempers will flare because a prescription that used to cost a $20 or $30 co-pay will now have to pay $185 (as an example). More so, in that scenario the same prescription when presented at one pharmacy may cost $185 but when filled at a different pharmacy chain down the street might only cost $130. Sad but true.

I am highly encouraged by the new generation actively stepping up and asking tough questions and challenging the system to ask "Why?" That simple act alone by millions of people will cause more to change than throwing an obscene amount of money at a problem that has a multitude of conflicting interests between all constituents.