Not all consumer-driven health plans need to have a high-deductible feature to ensure that patients are effectively managing their health care costs. 

Instead, a growing contingency of health care professionals are promoting value-based benefit packages as a potential solution to the health care crisis. Under such plans, out-of-pocket costs are adjusted based on an assessment of a clinical benefit on a specific patient population. Therefore, the more clinically viable the therapy is for the patient, the lower the cost should be. 

"Consumer-driven health involves giving [employees] the right incentives," Andrew Webber, president and CEO of the National Business Coalition on Health, said at the 12^th Annual NBCH's conference in Phoenix. "In some instances, it's lowering out-of-pocket expenditures. We need to encourage them to select better services and providers." 

High-deductible plans that trumpet cost containment often curb the use of essential and excessive therapies alike, proponents of value-based purchasing proclaim. "We have real concerns with the high-deductible model," Webber said.   

A. Mark Fendrick, professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan, argued that consumers need to approach medical services just as they do other consumer goods they buy, such as clothes, cars and electronics. "Every one of you has a current benefit plan that suggests that every doctor visit is the same, every diagnostic test is the same and every drug in a given tier is the same," he told conference attendees. 

For example, a 50 year-old employee should not be paying the same for a colonoscopy as a 26 year-old who saw Katie Couric get one and whose family does not have a history of colon cancer, Fendrick explained. 

Meanwhile, if value-based plans are to thrive, then health plans need to do a better job of sharing vital information, reports a new study by NBCH.  

NBCH based its findings on data gathered from its eValue8 program, which is used to gather health care data from nearly 200 health plans and insurers nationwide. 

While all surveyed plans (100%) said they offer provider directories – a critical tool for consumers – only 28% provide mortality or complication rates where applicable, and just 31% provide patient experience data. 

"[The] results prove health plans are collecting information that would be helpful to doctors and patients, however, many are not leveraging it to improve health and health care," said Webber. "[We] call on health plans to better utilize the trove of claims data at their fingertips to provide information for consumers."