Small Businesses Move Toward High-Deductible Health Care Insurance For Workers

The Associated Press reports that health insurance premiums rose a modest 5%, but overall coverage was less comprehensive. Premiums for family coverage increased to $12,680 and premiums for single coverage increased to $4,704, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust. Employers pick up, on average, about three-quar-ters of that cost.

Over the past decade, insurance premiums have grown much more quickly than wages and inflation. That wasn’t the case this year. But to help slow the costs of health insurance, many companies are increasingly offering coverage that requires their workers to pay more of their medical expenses before the insurance will kick in. In just one year, the percentage of workers enrolled in high-deductible insurance of $1,000 or more jumped from 12% to 18%.

The shift toward high-deductible insurance was most dramatic for workers in small businesses, where more than one in three covered workers must pay at least $1,000 out of pocket before their plan will start to pay a share of their health care bills.