Patient Incentives and Hospital Insurance

The fastest growing component of the consumer price index is hospital costs, which currently are rising at the rate of 15 percent per year; if this rate continues, costs will double every five years. Because "third parties" such as Blue Cross, Medicare, and commercial insurance companies have assumed the predominant role in financing these increased hospitalization expenses, the consumer anticipates little personal cost for the use of hospital facilities and there is little resistance to increased costs.