Early Consumer Testing of Actuarial Value Concepts

This study finds that consumers are very interested in knowing the value of their health plan choices; in other words, whether their options are a good value for their premium dollars. However, determining value is very difficult for consumers. The typical health plan has too many cost-sharing features for consumers to figure out how much coverage the plan is offering. Difficulties stem from the fact that many of the terms are unfamiliar to consumers, and the fact that it is difficult for consumers to weigh the myriad features so they can be compared across plans.