EBRI Issue Brief

The Impact of Length of Time Enrolled in a Health Plan on Consumer Engagement and Health Plan Satisfaction: Findings From the 2017 Consumer Engagement in Healthcare Survey

May 22, 2018 8  pages

Summary

Executive Summary

The EBRI/Greenwald & Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey (CEHCS) is an online survey that examines issues surrounding consumer-driven health care, including the cost of insurance, the cost of care, satisfaction with health care, satisfaction with health care plans, reasons for choosing a plan, and sources of health information.

The survey was conducted Aug. 10 to Sept. 1, 2017. Over 3,560 adults ages 21?64 who had health insurance through an employer, purchased directly from a carrier, or purchased through a government exchange participated in the survey.

This Issue Brief focuses on whether and how attitudes and behaviors change with the amount of time an individual has been enrolled in their health plan. ?

  • Overall satisfaction does not increase when participants are in health plans for long periods of time (e.g., 10+ years), regardless of whether the plan is a traditional health plan, consumer-driven health plan (CDHP), or high deductible health plan (HDHP). ?
  • Likewise, consumer engagement does not increase with time enrolled in a health plan. However, there is some evidence that health savings account (HSA)-eligible health plan enrollees are more engaged in some aspects of their HSA the longer they have been enrolled in their HSA-eligible health plan.