A report conducted by Thomson Reuters and NPR recently found that many Americans are becoming more frugal with their healthcare spending, and not receiving care until they know the price.

The poll found that in the past 12 months, 16 percent of those who received healthcare compared prices first, which was higher than the previous year's figure of 11 percent. When asking those who looked for such information, seven in 10 said this helped them select a healthcare company. Close to half of those queried received cost information from insurers, which was much higher than the 26 percent recorded the previous year.

"It is encouraging that people are increasingly incorporating cost information into their decision-making process when determining which healthcare services they should seek and from which providers," said Dr. Raymond Fabius, chief medical officer at the healthcare business of Thomson Reuters.

The report added that 45 percent looked for healthcare prices on the internet. This was more than double the amount who did so during the previous year.

If a person is looking for a healthcare policy at an affordable rate, it may benefit them by looking at health insurance quotes.