Thrifty Thinking: Health Care Cost Estimator

I recently found out about a new tool from UnitedHealthcare - the myHealthcare Cost Estimator. I had a chance to interview Matthew Yi from UnitedHealthcare about the feature and how it works.
 
1)      How does the tool work?

UnitedHealthcare’s myHealthcare Cost Estimator helps people learn about available treatments they are considering for themselves or their loved ones, and outlines key steps and decision points for various procedures and services. This online tool is especially helpful for women since studies reveal that women are the primary decision makers for health care in most families.

myHealthcare Cost Estimator provides access to detailed price information – based on actual contracted rates with care providers – for more than 100 treatments and procedures, and compares side-by-side both the quality and cost information for 240,000 different physicians and hospitals. In addition, the online tool offers a simple, intuitive user-interface that makes understanding health treatment options as easy as comparison shopping online for airline tickets, electronic devices or other consumer goods.

myHealthcare Cost Estimator also tailors cost estimates to a person’s specific benefits plan design to identify out-of-pocket costs, fees that will be paid by their employer, and real-time account balances available in eligible health care accounts.  The tool provides information about common alternate treatment options to help inform patients about their choices and general educational information about how their benefits work and how costs are determined.

Finally, myHealthcare Cost Estimator provides custom “care paths” for an individual based on the treatment that person is researching. Care paths bundle quality and price information, alternate treatment options, local physicians and hospitals performing the procedure, and health benefits information to make it easy for people to understand and anticipate the entire health care experience for a given treatment or procedure.
 
2) How does a consumer use the cost estimator?
 
myHealthcare Cost Estimator can be accessed online through the “estimate health cost” section of UnitedHealthcare’s dedicated member website, www.myuhc.com. The tool is available to more than 14 million UnitedHealthcare employer-sponsored plan participants in 47 markets.


3) Why is it important to be aware of healthcare costs even if you have insurance?
 
Consumers may comparison shop for health care services and procedures for any number of reasons—from cost to looking for alternative treatments to seeking recommendations and feedback about specific doctors, clinics, and hospitals. Even those with health insurance may find that they can save money by choosing an in-network doctor or hospital with the same quality rating as their current provider, or from considering a similar treatment about which they weren’t aware.
 
4) What can a consumer do if there is a drastic difference in cost between a service provider that is in-network vs. out-of-network?
 
The beauty of myHealthcare Cost Estimator is that it helps moms and families become aware of differences in price between various doctors and hospitals before they schedule a treatment or procedure. The online tool provides valuable information about a full range of treatment options and associated costs so moms and families can make well-informed decisions that are tailored to their personal needs.


5) What are some ways consumers can help keep their own healthcare costs down?
 
myHealthcare Cost Estimator is a great tool to help identify high quality health care services that are also cost effective. A person should also keep this tool in mind when considering a new procedure or treatment to see if a more affordable alternative is available and then discuss that option with her or his physician. Ultimately, myHealthcare Cost Estimator is a tool designed to provide better information to people so that they can make better health care decisions for themselves and their loved ones.