'Healthcare costs for younger people inch up'

 Younger employees are posing a more substantial cost risk, according to a Feb. 4 whitepaper from UnitedHealthcare and Health Action Council, which focuses on employer healthcare programs.

The research relied on data from more than 225,000 HAC members with UnitedHealthcare plans. Craig Kurtzweil, chief data and analytics officer for UnitedHealthcare’s commercial business, joined the Becker’s Payer Issues podcast to discuss the findings.

“We typically assume that the younger population is low cost, kind of invincible, right?” he said. “But we’re starting to see that change a bit.”

Year-over-year spending on Generation Z’s healthcare increased 18%, almost double the baby boomer growth rate. Even though baby boomers are still the highest-spending generation, Gen Z’s catastrophic claims jumped 41%.

The crux of the issue: “Younger folks are starting to develop chronic conditions or health risks at younger ages,” Mr. Kurtzweil said. 

Over five years, the average per member per month catastrophic care spend increased 39%, according to the whitepaper. Mr. Kurtzweil said trends in catastrophic claims are “no longer focused on just the older, sicker population. It’s focused everywhere.”

Across most age groups, men have lower primary care provider engagement, with engagement even 32% lower than women’s during their late twenties. Non-engaged men generally have steeper average catastrophic case costs compared to non-engaged women, as well. Metabolic disease is a particular concern for men, as those with a condition are more than seven times as likely to undergo a catastrophic event.

“What you see in the data is men make decent healthcare choices when something has happened,” Mr. Kurtzweil said. “It’s the before that we’re worried about.”

Members who have engaged with their primary care provider for at least three years see an average catastrophic case cost that is 27% lower than less engaged members.

The report proposed seven solutions for employers to address these challenges: prioritize primary care provider selection and engagement, focus on preventive care, leverage virtual care as an entry point to primary care, emphasize metabolic and chronic condition management, develop a strategy for men over 40, hone communications across generations, and segment populations and identify upcoming risk.

Mr. Kurtzweil said he thinks the data is where it needs to be to identify higher risk members, but that is not the main challenge.

“Analytically, we can find these folks as quickly as possible,” he said. “But if you’re unable to get them to engage and to sign up and to participate, none of that’s worth it.”

https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/healthcare-costs-for-younger-people-inch-up/