All Canadians have government-funded health insurance, which pays for any medical care they require. However, when traveling out of the country, Canadians usually acquire supplementary health insurance to cover the difference between the costs incurred for emergency treatment and what the government program pays. In the United States, this cost differential can be prohibitive. Until recently, private insurance companies (such as BlueCross BlueShield) charged everyone the same weekly rate, regardless of age. However, because of rising costs and the realization that older people frequently incur greater medical emergency expenses, insurers had to change their premium plans. They decided to offer rates that depend on the age of the customer. To help determine the new rates, one insurance company gathered data concerning the age and mean daily medical expenses of a random sample of 1,348 Canadians during the previous 12-month period.
a. Calculate the coefficient of determination.
b. What does the statistic calculated in part (a) tell you?
c. Determine the least squares line.
d. Interpret the coefficients.
e. What rate plan would you suggest?