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The Health Insurance Industry and Career Possibilities

Health care costs have been rising steadily for decades. The result has been a crisis in health insurance for employers as well as average consumers. However, changes in the health insurance industry have created new opportunities for professionals with health care degrees.

Recent trends show about 60 percent of firms now offer health insurance to full-time employees, compared to 69 percent in 2000 and 80 percent in 1989. With the cost of insuring a family now hovering around $10,000 annually, many employers have dropped or greatly reduced coverage. In fact, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that nearly 46 million Americans lack health insurance.

While there is no consensus on how to handle the crisis, the current trend reflects a combination of:

• Employer payroll cutbacks
• More consumer-driven choices
• Trimming health care costs

Health Insurance Challenges Create New Jobs for Health Care Degree Holders

Despite Americans' frustration with employer-sponsored health insurance, the job outlook for health care professionals is outstanding. Cost-cutting demands from managed care providers have shifted many medical responsibilities to teams of skilled health care workers. While doctors still supervise care, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and other health care professionals collaborate on treatment to save both time and money.

With the former duties of general practitioners splintering into a myriad of smaller roles, health care jobs should continue to increase. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 13 million Americans worked in health care jobs in 2004. Three percent of those jobs were held by self-employed specialists like medical billers. If current growth projections hold, close to four million new health care jobs will emerge in the next decade.

An Aging Population Relies on Health Insurance

The number of people in older age groups, which typically require more health care, will outpace total population growth in the next decade. In addition, improved technology and treatment will lead to:

• Greater life expectancies
• Identification and treatment of previously fatal conditions
• Higher survival rates
• A broad emphasis on outpatient care

Cost containment pressures will continue to change how the health care industry operates. Many health care facilities will adjust their staffing and administrative expenses. Again, the impact should be minimal to job seekers. Fewer hospital workers mean more workers in outpatient, long-term, and home health centers. Job openings will also result from retirements and routine turnover among existing health care professionals.

A Bachelor's Degree in Health Care Creates New Opportunities

Experts cite a critical need for registered nurses through the next decade. Part of the recruiting challenge stems from the fact that few prospective health care workers realize that they can qualify for RN status without completing a bachelor's degree. However, skilled nurses that earn a bachelor's degree in nursing can qualify for more lucrative positions in better health care facilities.

Graduates holding other health care degrees stand to benefit from a move to managed care by health insurance providers. Physician assistants, nurse practitioners, dental hygienists, and other professionals with bachelor's degrees already handle much of the face-to-face contact with patients at their medical practices.

Health care professionals can expect to enjoy another decade of high demand, exceptional job security, and attractive compensation packages. With new online and distance learning programs designed to help more working adults earn health care degrees, the health care community hopes they can stem their staffing shortages soon.

Sources
Associated Press
Boston Globe
Bureau of Labor Statistics