Healthcare Key Findings – May/June 2011
| Americans’ Dental Insurance Coverage | ||
| Healthcare Costs Up, Usage Down | ||
| Electronic Medical Records | ||
| Recession Affecting Breaks at Work | ||
| Customer Service More Important During Recession | ||
Americans’ Dental Insurance Coverage
One-quarter (26%) of the 172 million Americans who have private health insurance did not have dental insurance in 2008 (most recent data available), per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One-third (33%) have dental coverage through a comprehensive health insurance plan, 26% get coverage through a single-service plan that only covers dental, and 14% use a combination of coverage through both comprehensive and single service plans.
Healthcare Costs Up, Usage Down
During 2010, about 52 million Americans went without health insurance, compared to 38 million in 2001. Seventy five million Americans skipped doctor visits all together, along with not getting prescriptions and recommended tests or treatments in 2010 because of costs, up from 47 million in 2001. Among people with insurance who have high deductibles, 31% percent went without care due to cost.
Another healthcare expense concern is the continued growth of out-of-pocket costs. The Commonwealth Fund reports that 49 million working adults spent 10% or more of their income on these costs and premiums in 2010, an increase from 31 million in 2001.
Electronic Medical Records
Some 20-30% of all primary care physicians in the U.S. currently use basic electronic health records. Practices or physicians using electronic health records make an average of $44,000 more in net income per year than those who do not, basically because electronic processes are set up to log all procedures performed, which triggers billing that might be missed using a paper method.
Recession Affecting Breaks at Work
One-third of American workers (32%) take less than a half hour for lunch, 5% take less than 15 minutes, and 10% never take a lunch break. Almost one in five (18%) typically do not leave their desk but eat in their office daily. Since the recession began, 47% have been packing lunch more often than they used to in order to save money or to eat healthier.
The recession has also caused changes for smokers: 44% say they are more likely to quit because of the cost of their habits. In addition, 21% are taking fewer smoke breaks during the work day, and 20% have quit completely.
To put that into perspective, the majority of smokers take three smoke breaks per day (70%) and another 12% say they take four or five breaks a day. Some 78% of all smokers say their smoke breaks last up to 10 minutes each.
Customer Service More Important During Recession
Some 61% of Americans say that customer service is more important to them during the recession than it was in prior years. They repay excellent service by spending an average of 9% more with those companies. Only 37% say that companies have taken notice of this change and improved their customer service. Some 28% say companies are actually paying less attention to the service they provide.
The greatest influences in consumers’ choices of companies to do business with include personal experience (98%), the company’s reputation or brand (92%), and recommendations from friends and family (88%).
Bullets
- Some 43% of shoppers say they always rely on a shopping list. Married shoppers (52%), women (46%), and Whites (46%) are more likely than the average American to shop with a list, while Hispanics (37%), singles (35%) and Millennials (32%) are less likely. One third (34%( make lists based on recipes and 31% use recommendations from family or friends.
- Some 34% of North Americans say they visit social networking sites because they receive an email to their personal address. In comparison, only 4% do so after getting an SMS text message, a direct mailing (2%), an email to their work account (2%), or a telephone call (1%).
- When on a road trip, 60% of moms say they sing songs with their children in the car to keep them occupied and entertained.