Letter to the Editor of the Los Angeles Times

Daniel Yi reports on June 3 in "High deductibles a pain for some insured?" about the struggles some consumers face with high-deductible health insurance plans. These consumers made a decision to purchase insurance with premiums they could afford in order to have insurance protection for potential major medical bills that they likely couldn't afford. That is generally how people buy homeowner's and car insurance: They don't buy insurance that covers having their grass cut or their oil changed because they know that would be too expensive. Instead, they pay for routine maintenance themselves, knowing they have insurance to protect them if they have a fire or a major accident. People with high-deductible insurance are making a similar trade off. Most people would rather have policies with low-deductibles and low co-payments, but few families can afford the $10,000 or more in annual premiums the insurance would cost. They are saving money on lower premiums by buying the high-deductible insurance but that means being prepared to pay some costs out of pocket. That's how real insurance works.

Grace-Marie Turner

President

Galen Institute

P.O. Box 320010

Alexandria, VA 22320