New Research Reveals Policies That Support Access to Breastfeeding Counseling and Supplies Have High Rewards, Low Cost

Insurance Weekly News

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Weekly News -- Medela released new evidence highlighting the importance of breastfeeding support on the health of babies, moms and the United States economy. Medela commissioned Milliman, Inc., a global, independent, actuarial firm, to assess the impact of breastfeeding support, supplies and counseling on health insurance premiums. The data demonstrates that comprehensive breastfeeding support, now covered by most health plans under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) i,ii,iii, has minimal impact on insurance premiums, while also resulting in potential cost savings from common pediatric conditions in the United States.

The results of the actuarial study reveal that if a person had employer-sponsored health insurance with a $500 per month premium, only 14 cents would be attributed to the breastfeeding benefit. Breastfeeding support represents only 0.028 percent of total commercial premium dollars and 0.041 percent of total Medicaid per-enrollee expenditures.iv In comparison, prescription medicines account for 17 percent of the total U.S. health care spend.v

"The breastfeeding support benefit represents less than a quarter of a percent of an insurance premium, and if you factor in cost offsets, the cost of the benefit would be even less," said Susan Pantely, Consulting Actuary, Milliman, Inc. "Our research shows that the benefit can save about $1.6 million per 100,000 women of peak childbearing age in 2017 dollars when factoring in just four of the most common and costly childhood conditions in the first year of life if optimal breastfeeding rates were to be achieved. The estimated savings under current breastfeeding rates could be between $405,000 to $940,000 per 100,000 women." vi

Keywords for this news article include: Medela, Pregnancy, Breastfeeding, Women's Health, Health Insurance.