Health Insurance Information-Seeking Behaviors Among the Uninsured

Abstract

As a result of the Affordable Care Act, millions of previously uninsured individuals are facing the daunting task of selecting health insurance. In order to better understand how to reach the uninsured and support their health insurance decision making, this study examined where the uninsured collect information about health insurance and the extent to which they trust those sources and media. We analyzed secondary data on health insurance information-seeking behaviors collected from a survey of 343 uninsured individuals. The Internet, mail, and television were among the most frequently used media, though all 3 had low trust scores. Participants sought information from health care providers and interpersonal sources less frequently but trusted it more than they trusted the media. Age, gender, race, and education were predictors of use and trust of different media and sources of health insurance information. Findings suggest that strategies that pair health care professionals, lay health advisors, or community liaisons with the ubiquity of the Internet may be a strong approach for delivering quality health insurance information to the uninsured. Tailoring messages might also be effective at reaching specific subgroups of the uninsured.

Acknowledgments

Conflict of interest: Mary C. Politi was on the U.S. Medication Adherence Advisory Board (Merck) from 2011 to 2013. She currently has an investigator-initiated grant proposal funded by Merck (2014–2015).