Assicurazioni sanitarie private: costi, benefici, incentivi

Private Health Insurances: Costs, Benefits, Incentives

Abstract disponibile solo in lingua inglese

In this paper, the author suggests a means of reducing the "moral hazard" in private health insurances, by giving policy-holders and doctors an incentive to curb the medical expenses paid by the insurance. The technique is a simple one: instead of restricting itself to paying the patient's medical bills, the insurance should also pay the patient the deficit between the total of the bill and the standard payment envisaged for the type of treatment or operation in question in the insurance table. In this way, not only would patients be incentivated to use cheaper doctors and hospitals but the latter also would be incentivated to check their prices. The paper also examines the hitches and difficulties the proposal would involve, together with possible methods of tackling them. It also examines the benefits the proposal would offer in terms of economic saving and improvement of the incentive structure.