Physician · Health Executive · Author

Health insurance premiums rise every year. That is not news. What is different now is the pace. Health costs are climbing much faster than inflation and wages, the gap will widen again in 2027, and families are already being priced out of coverage and care. This is not sustainable.

It’s astonishing that approximately 80% of medical bills contain at least one error.  When patients formally appeal a denial, a large share of those denials get reversed. Depending on the type of denial, anywhere from a third to more than 80% are overturned. For appealed prior-authorization denials in Medicare Advantage, the overturn rate topped 83%.

A physician friend told me about a recent visit that stayed with her. A patient sat down, pulled out her phone, and explained that before coming in she had typed her symptoms into an AI chatbot. She arrived with a printed list of questions, a few possible explanations, and several treatment options she wanted to talk through. A decade ago, my friend said, she might have braced herself. That day she felt something closer to hope.

Here is a number that should give you pause. Only 12% of U.S. adults have proficient health literacy. That figure comes from the National Assessment of Adult Literacy, and the broader research has barely budged since that assessment. Put another way, nearly 9 out of 10 American adults lack the skills to fully understand and act on the health information thrown at them every day.