The Insurance Industry Discovers a Cost-Effective Alternative
By Jack Miller, L.Ac., President, Pacific College of Oriental Medicine |
The article reported that health plans are changing drastically due to changing demands made by patients. American Western Life Insurance Company's Wellness Plan offers a 24-hour holistic hotline, and its 123-page patient handbook is filled with natural treatments like hot chili peppers to prevent a cholesterol-clogged liver. And, while American Western Life's plan is much more liberal than most insurance plans in its coverage of alternative medicine, many treatments once scorned by the medical establishment are gaining widespread coverage from health-maintenance organizations, insurance companies and health alliances across the country.
According to the article, the reasons for this change in the health insurance community is that patients are demanding more options in care and insurers are finding it beneficial to offer complementary medical procedures. As patients look for alternative ways to get healthy, insurers must respond by offering coverage in order to maintain their subscriber base. But the benefit to insurers is greater than simply satisfying patient demands. As the payers of treatment, insurance companies are finding that it is cheaper to keep people healthy through preventive medicine than to treat an illness. And when treatment is necessary, alternative care treatment costs are often less costly than traditional treatment modalities. The article offered the example of a conventional prescription for hay fever, Seldane, which costs about $45.21 for 30 tablets; the natural alternative, freeze-dried stinging nettles, costs only $8.10 for 45 capsules.
Six states now require health insurers to cover acupuncture, and 41 states require coverage for chiropractic, according to the article. In addition, midwives, massage therapists, osteopaths and relaxation experts are receiving coverage in an increasing number of states. Lovelace Health Systems Inc., a traditional HMO in Albuquerque, N.M., even offers referrals to Mexican medicine healers when traditional allopathic medicine fails to offer answers.
The trend of alternative medicine, notably on the West Coast and in the Midwest, is large. In the article, David Eisenberg of Beth Israel Hospital in Boston reported that 34% of Americans spent a total of $20.3 billion out of pocket on some form of alternative care in 1990. Even the National Institutes of Health's Office of Alternative Medicine's budget has been increased from $2 million in 1992 to $5.4 million in 1995.
The Wall Street Journal also reported that in metropolitan Seattle, increasing interest in alternative therapy prompted Blue Cross of Washington and Alaska last summer to enroll 1,000 individual subscribers in a pilot supplemental insurance plan, "AlternaPath," that offers traditional medicine but also access to a network of state-licensed naturopathic doctors who rely on "natural" healing, including herbs, acupuncturists, and homeopathic physicians. Jack C. McRae, a senior vice president, was quoted in the article as saying, "We didn't advertise it and it was gone immediately." He added, however, that he doesn't yet know whether the $170 that subscribers pay a year for $1,000 of benefits renders a money-making operation.
The Harvard Community Health Plan in Boston provides another innovative example. The health plan now reimburses 2,000 patients a year for taking its mind-body relaxation and coping-skills course. Matthew Budd, founder of the plan's behavioral-medicine department, told the Wall Street Journal, "For Boston, the medicine I'm doing is very alternative." The program they offer is especially helpful for patients with physical complaints without actual illness -- a concern that can make up between 30% and 50% of doctors' patient loads, Budd said.
Alternative medicine is a trend that will continue to grow. As alternative medical practices continue to gain acceptance, not only in the medical community but by the general public, wider use will become evident. Alternative medicine, including such fields as acupuncture, massage therapy, osteopaths and naturopaths, is considered by many to be the future of medicine. According to many industry observers, insurers are going to have to adapt to the new practices in the medical community if they want to provide their subscribers with the best and most innovative care available.
Acupuncture.com |