Workers Paying More for Healthcare

The cost of employer-sponsored health insurance continues to race past inflation and wages, rising 6.1% this year and workers are bearing the burden , according to a study released Sept. 12.

The rate of increase is slower than in previous years, but since 2000, the share paid by the average U.S. worker has doubled. The average total cost of healthcare premiums for a family of four, including the share paid by employers, now exceeds the amount a minimum wage worker earns in a year.

The slowdown in premium increases continues a four-year trend, according to the employer survey released Tuesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust. The average annual premium was $12,106 this year for family coverage and $4,479 for single coverage, according to the Kaiser study, with workers contributing $3,281 and $694 of those totals, respectively. Those worker contributions are up by 10% and 11% over the amounts reported last year.

Premiums for family coverage have increased 78% since 2001, while wages have risen 19% and the cost of living has climbed 17%.

In addition to rising premium costs and plan deductibles, 95% of covered workers are now responsible for copayments and shared costs for hospital stays, outpatient surgeries and out-of-plan services.

Most Americans are feeling the pressure, but lower-paid and middle-class workers are experiencing a disproportionate pinch.

Increases in health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket expenses are often the same across the board no matter how much an employee makes, so already-strapped workers are struggling harder to make ends meet.

The most recent census data show that 14% of those without insurance make $25,000 to $50,000 a year. A recent California HealthCare Foundation survey found that 17% of Californians could not pay one or more medical bills in the last year.

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