Breadth of provider networks vary by plan

A study recently came out indicating that provider coverage for an insurance plan (roughly understood as the number of providers that accept a specific insurance plan) can vary greatly among insurance plans. This can have very practical implications when issues arise (e.g. if someone needs to see a specialist and realizes that the desired specialist is not considered in-network). The health insurance exchanges have generally done a pretty good job of helping consumers compare plans on the financial dimensions (e.g. premium, maximum out-of-pocket); they have generally done a pretty lousy job of comparing strength of provider networks (at most, many exchanges offer a doctor directory that allows consumers to check for network status for specific doctors).

As more and more consumers become surprised by who is in-network and who is not, consumers are likely to push for metrics to help compare provider networks across insurance plans. Over time, I expect that tools to compare the non-financial dimensions of insurance plans will become more and more sophisticated.