While health insurance hyperinflation is a national phenomenon, the problem is even worse in Wisconsin, according to the 5th annual report from Citizen Action of Wisconsin, which says some regions of the state pay thousands of dollars more than other parts.
Congressman Ron Kind (D-La Crosse) says there’s a lot of work to do in order to improve quality of care at a better price. “The three major areas I think that we have to be focused on is competition, quality and cost.”
Kind says specifically, he’s very involved in trying to increase competition through the creation of health insurance exchanges by 2014. He says as insurance plans compete against each other, it tends to restrain costs. “It’s important that we move forward and shape the exchange in Wisconsin based on a track record of what does work, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be limited to just statewide.” Kind wants to move away from a payment system that rewards quantity versus quality of health care.
Robert Kraig authored the report. He says there is a 30 percent variation between the highest cost major metro area, La Crosse, and the lowest cost metro area, Madison, which amounts to about a $2,000 difference for a single policy each year.
Milwaukee Democrat Jon Richards says his constituents tell him that their insurance costs are higher than their mortgage payment.
