Enhanced Cost Messaging Yields Minimal Change in Primary Care Clinic Selection: Tim McDonald, PhD, MPP, and Bryan E. Dowd, PhD

On this episode of Managed Care Cast, The American Journal of Managed Care^® (AJMC^®) was joined by Tim McDonald, PhD, MPP, and Bryan E. Dowd, PhD, authors of research published in the April 2026 issue.

Their study, "Benefit Design and Consumer Information: Results From a Randomized Trial," found that reducing information barriers for consumers selecting primary care clinics in a tiered network design had only a marginal effect on choice. McDonald and Dowd noted that this suggests informational interventions alone may be insufficient to overcome existing inertia. They added that consumers may already be adequately informed through the tiered benefit design.

In AJMC’s conversation with the authors, we discussed how provider- and consumer-oriented payment reforms influence health care efficiency and the role of consumer inertia. We also explored the key findings from their research and the broader implications for patient decision-making.

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