tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3697603232354740832.post3907798396677652757..comments2023-08-16T06:30:12.495-07:00Comments on HealthMatters: Reverse DeductibleUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3697603232354740832.post-80669695885644443782011-06-17T02:21:05.252-07:002011-06-17T02:21:05.252-07:00Barry: Apologies for any absence of clarity. I'...Barry: Apologies for any absence of clarity. I'm certainly not suggesting that Google or Microsoft drive health care policy. <br /><br />The point I was trying to make was partly one of equity: The employees who bear the brunt of high deductibles will be those with the lowest-paying jobs, whereas employees who can most afford high deductibles won't have to pay them because their employers are unlikely to require such coverage.<br /><br />Moreover, health macroeconomists have concluded that employees with extensive benefits and low deductibles are the most likely to overuse the system. These employees are unlikely to ever face a high deductible/low coverage situation, so the people who most overuse will continue to overuse. People with lesser benefits indulge in less overuse in the first place, so the effect on them of higher deductibles will be limited.<br /><br />BTW, Microsoft has over 89K employees worldwide, with most in the US. Other high tech employers:<br /><br />Apple - 49K<br />Cisco - 71K<br />Google - 26K<br />Dell - 103K<br />Hewlett-Packard - 325K<br />IBM - 427KK.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10222703055177237209noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3697603232354740832.post-40799718750844730782011-06-16T05:19:04.465-07:002011-06-16T05:19:04.465-07:00"...it would be penny-wise and pound-foolish ..."...it would be penny-wise and pound-foolish for Google to lower benefits if that reduced their intellectual capital by putting them at a recruiting disadvantage with Microsoft. Thus, the very people who overuse the health care system would be unaffected by the high-deductible policy meant to curb their enthusiasm..."<br /><br />The total number of people who work for either of those companies is what? Less than 30K?<br /><br />What percentage of the American people have gold-plated health insurance from their employers? 10%% 20%?<br /><br />Be careful making policy on the grounds of a small minority of people.Barry DeCiccohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04735814736387033844noreply@blogger.com