Financial incentives alone unlikely to curb rising health care costs.(HEALTH CARE COSTS)

"A disproportionately large share of companies' health care costs stem from the treatment of a small group of employees and dependents who have chronic or catastrophic illnesses. As a result, companies that focus solely on providing financial incentives to encourage plan participants to be more discerning health care consumers are apt to realize only limited cost savings.

The 4% of participants with serious health conditions account for nearly half of health benefit spending in any given year. This group is unlikely to be won over by financial incentives or plan design features, such as high-deductible health plans paired with health savings accounts, which allow …