Copayment
The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and Germany and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (February 2017) |
A copayment or copay (called a gap in Australian English) is a fixed amount for a covered service, paid by a patient to the provider of service before receiving the service. It may be defined in an
Insurance companies use copayments to share
However, a copay may also discourage people from seeking necessary medical care, and higher copays may result in non-use of essential medical services and prescriptions, thus rendering someone who is insured effectively uninsured because they are unable to pay higher copays.
Germany
The
Prescription drugs
Some insurance companies set the copay percentage for non-generic drugs higher than for
To cushion the high copay costs of brand name drugs, some pharmaceutical companies offer
Observed effects
Medication copayments have also been associated with reduced use of necessary and appropriate medications for
See also
- Coinsurance
- Deductible
- Out-of-pocket expense
Notes
- ^ University of Puget Sound. Benefits update. 2006 medical plan frequently asked questions. What is the difference between co-payments, coinsurance, and deductibles? Retrieved November 10, 2008.
- ^ Lindsay, Cotton M. and Bernard Feigenbaum (1984) 'Rationing by waiting lists', American Economic Review 74(3): 404-17.
- ^ Diego Varela and Anca Timofte (2011), 'The social cost of hospital waiting lists and the case for copayment: Evidence from Galicia' Archived 2015-11-07 at the Wayback Machine, The USV Annals of Economics and Public Administration 11(1): 18-26.
- ^ "Germany: Health reform triggers sharp drop in number of hospitals". Allianz. 25 July 2005. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ "Average Length of Hospital Stay, by Diagnostic Category – United States, 2003". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- PMID 16495287.
- ^ Schacht, Wendy H. and Thomas, John R. Patent Law and Its Application to the Pharmaceutical Industry: An Examination of the Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984("The Hatch-Waxman Act")[1] Retrieved December 1, 2014.
- ^ Cole JA, et al. Drug copayment and adherence in chronic heart failure: effect on cost and outcomes.[permanent dead link] Pharmacotherapy 2006;26:1157-64.
- PMID 21606426.
- ^ Dormuth CR, et al. Impact of two sequential drug cost-sharing policies on the use of inhaled medications in older patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or asthma. Clin Ther 2006;28:964-78; discussion 962-3.
- ^ Goldman DP, Joyce GF, Zheng Y. Prescription drug cost sharing: associations with medication and medical utilization and spending and health. JAMA 2007;298:61-69.