Buchmueller T C, Feldstein P J
Graduate School of Management, University of California, Irvine 92717, USA.
J Health Econ. 1997 Apr;16(2):231-47. doi: 10.1016/s0167-6296(96)00531-0.
A recent policy change by the University of California (UC) provides a unique natural experiment for investigating the sensitivity of consumers to health plan premiums. When the UC moved to a policy of limiting its contribution to the cost of the least expensive plan, out-of-pocket premiums increased for roughly one-third of UC employees. We examine the extent to which UC employees switched plans in response to this change in premiums. Our results indicate a strong response. Individuals facing premium increases of less than $10 were roughly 5 times as likely to switch plans as those whose premiums remained constant.
加利福尼亚大学（UC）最近的一项政策变化为研究消费者对健康保险计划保费的敏感度提供了一个独特的自然实验。当UC转向一项限制其对最便宜计划成本贡献的政策时，大约三分之一的UC员工自付保费增加。我们研究了UC员工因保费变化而更换计划的程度。我们的结果表明反应强烈。保费增加不到10美元的个人更换计划的可能性大约是保费保持不变者的5倍。
