P.Z. Pilzer on changes in the US health insurance

American economist Paul Zane Pilzer is one of the world's leading experts on entrepreneurship. The materials of his book "Wellness Revolution" have been used in the US Congress in the course of work on the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, which provided for the creation of a new type of health insurance - savings accounts, three types of medical (HSA -Health Savings Account, FSA - Flexible Spending Account and HRA - Health Reimbursement Arrangement). New health savings accounts overcome prevailing in the US health insurance system of severe restrictions - insurance losses in the event of dismissal or moving to another state. The advantages of HSAs are savings in the form of tax deductions, the possibility of accumulation of insurance payments from year to year and getting them interest, the preservation of the accumulated funds in the transition from one employer to another or moving from place to place, and use this account for any potential spending on health care, including wellness services. FSA and the HRA can only offer an employer. These accounts have its attractions - the ability to use the finances at the beginning of the year in the first case, there are no restrictions on the amount of money spent by the employer to reimburse the employee the cost of maintaining health - in the second. P.Pilzer is an active supporter of the development of corporate health programs and provides medical insurance on a competitive basis, the preservation of corporate social responsibility for its employees' health. At the same time, in conditions of development of modern technologies in the wellness market P.Pilzer connects health prospects with the spread of individual health insurance plans. In published in 2005 his book "The New Health Insurance Solution: How to Get Cheaper, Better Coverage Without a Traditional Employer Plan", the author of a very detailed account of how Americans can become independent of their employer, reduce the cost of their health insurance and keep it at a loss or change of place of work. P.Pilzer also showed that the current system of health insurance is a huge problem not only for consumers but also for employers, especially small businesses. Unlike group insurance plans, individual health insurance can be safer, cheaper and more flexible. P.Pilzer believes that only serious problem the United States health care system is its very high cost. The author believes that in the long term, the greatest opportunity for reducing the cost of medical care is to implement wellness programs that focus on prevention and disease prevention.

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