We are in a high deductible, HSA eligible plan. Generic meds that cover chronic conditions or are “preventable “ care cost us $0 if we use the mail order pharmacy for 90 day supply. I take Evista as a breast cancer survivor. It used to cost me about $125/month as a tier 3 drug. Now it’s approved for bone loss prevention and costs me nothing. Same thing for several of my husband’s meds.
Aetna has a tool on their website where you plug in your expected expenses and it calculated the best choice for us. I was surprised when it suggested a high deductible plan. It has proved to be accurate and we have saved money. My expenses are very low but DHs are very high, so he hits OOP max nearly every year. Plus our HSA can cover things like contacts without having to enroll in separate vision insurance.
I realize not everyone has the choices that are best for them, but for many people the high deductible plan saves money.