Apta Healthcare Blog

Have you ever given much thought to how loud the sun might be? Or, how loud it actually is? I love reading about our cosmos. Black holes, exoplanets, gravitational waves, particle colliders… it all makes my mind race and expand (kind of like the universe [even if we can’t agree on how fast it’s happening!]). But most of all, I like to think about our small place in it all, tucked away on this blue marble in the midst of nothing and everything, all at once.

The uncertainty surrounding the future of healthcare in the United States has put many Americans on edge. The proposal to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and replace it with the Republican-sponsored American Health Care Act (or Better Care Reconciliation Act) is making people feel unsure, and possibly leaving many Americans uninsured.

In a recent feature series, The Atlantic magazine highlighted “Platinum Patients,” as the most expensive 5 percent of healthcare consumers. The healthcare bills of the Americans featured in this article equal those of the other 95 percent of consumers combined. Who are these people and why do they account for such a hefty portion of healthcare spend?

If you were renting a house, would you invest $30,000 in a kitchen renovation? Of course not. The investment would only benefit the owner who still has complete control over the future of the home. In the world of insurance, the fully insured model is just pouring money into a rental.

Last year, consumer healthcare solutions leader Alegeus Technologies announced its inaugural Healthcare Consumerism Index, which sought to measure consumer behavior and engagement during the healthcare purchasing process.