Workers at big U.S. employers are more likely than they used to be to turn to their employers and their health plans for health information, according to the National Business Group on Health (NBGH).
The NBGH, Washington, has published that finding in a summary of results from a survey of 1,538 workers ages 22 to 69 at U.S. employers with 2,000 or more employees.
All participating employees get health benefits through their employers or through their unions.
The percentage of workers who say they have used their employers as a source of medical information increased to 75% in 2010, from 53% in 2007.
Over that same period, the percentage of workers who turned to their health plans for medical information increased to 76%, from 67%.
Participants also were asked about their views on "comparative effectiveness research."
About 74% said they would trust nonprofit organizations focused on a specific illness to come up with evaluations of the effectiveness of various treatments, and 70% said they would trust an independent panel of doctors and other health professionals. About 61% said they would trust a college, university or other educational institution to conduct comparative research.
About 39% of the survey participants said they support use of incentives to persuade plan members to use what are believed to be the most effective treatments.
Only 16% of the participants said they support use of penalties to keep plan members from using treatments that are believed to be less effective.
- Allison Bell
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