Wisconsin Sen. Larson says it’s time to take on the health insurance companies

“It’s more expensive to be healthy,” he says.

Health insurance deductibles are out of control according to Wisconsin Sen. Chris Larson.

Wisconsin residents are paying $3,347 a year just on doctor visit deductibles. On top of that, they’re paying $1,203 for deductibles on prescription drugs.

That, according to Citizen Action of Wisconsin organizing director Kevin Kane. 

Those in the Gundersen Health System insurance plan pay $1,100 out of pocket for prescriptions per year, and more than $3,200 for doctor’s visits.

“It’s more expensive to be healthy in Wisconsin at this point than many other places in the nation,” Larson said.

He continued to say someone needs to take on the insurance companies, “because we can’t always count on the insurance industry to base their decisions on what’s good for consumers, rather than what their bottom line is. It’s clear that legislative intervention is needed, at this point.”

Larson is supporting a plan from Citizen Action, calling for low, out-of-pocket health plans – with no deductibles for all prescription drugs and most doctor visits – for 2017, which has been suggested by the federal government. The deadline, however, for insurance companies to decide is July 22. Sign a Citizen Action petition here to bring down Rx costs.

Larson received a letter from a La Crosse woman recently, and described it like this: “I get very little health care because, even paying insurance premiums and having coverage, I still end up paying 90 percent of my healthcare service bill. I cannot afford high premiums and turn around and pay healthcare, too.”