Difficulty: Medium
Average Score: 77%
Entry Exam
Passage / Scenario
Health Care's Numbers Game: The game of health care is a risky one. Today emergency rooms are acting as primary care physicians for thousands of patients. This trend produces a vicious cycle of hospitals raising emergency room costs and passing that increase along to paying patients, who in turn pass it along to insurance companies, who in turn raise rates so even more people cannot afford the premium or the co-payment.For years, indigent people have used emergency rooms for very minor illnesses rather than seeing an outside doctor, but now emergency rooms are seeing people with insurance, but who cannot afford the co-payment or the deductible for the office visit.
If we don't change the way the healthcare game is played, we're all going to lose.
In sentence three, the word premium means
Correct answer
A
Rationale
The correct answer is A: An amount to be paid for an insurance policy. In the context of the passage, the word "premium" refers to the cost that individuals pay for their insurance coverage. This is evident from the sentence mentioning "raising rates so even more people cannot afford the premium or the co-payment." Choice B, "Something highly valued or esteemed," is incorrect as it does not align with the context of discussing healthcare costs. Choice C, "An addition to ordinary wages; a bonus," is incorrect as it does not relate to insurance costs. Choice D, "A gift provided with a purchase," is also incorrect as it does not fit the context of discussing healthcare expenses. The definition of "premium" as an amount paid for an insurance policy is the most appropriate interpretation in this scenario.