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You'll pay more.....
Get ready.
Employers are facing an 8 percent cost increase when they renew their health insurance plans for next year, according to early results from a survey by Mercer, the big employee benefits consultants.
They’re not sitting back and taking it.
And guess who’s going to get more of the health care cost burden?
More than half of employers who plan to take action to reduce their costs said they’d increase employees’ deductibles, co-pays and co-insurance or they’ll raise the total out-of-pocket cost employees have to pay.
And so, workers get more of the same.
Mercer says that between 2003 and 2007, the median family deductible went up by half, to $1,500 from $1,000, for a preferred provider organization, the most popular health plan that employers offer.
Harriet Johnson Brackey, the personal finance writer for the Sun-Sentinel, has been an award-winning business...
Comments
Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) are a relatively new development in the California insurance market, allowing consumers to accumulate tax-free savings toward the resolution of future medical problems. These plans link a cheaper - low monthly premium, high-deductible insurance plan to a tax-free health savings account, which is directed by the account owner, rather than an insurance bureaucrat in an office miles away.
Posted by: Ethan | September 8, 2008 2:11 AM
I can't stand it when the local media prints future cost projections from the national brokers such as AON or Mercer. Last month AON noted a 10% increase and this Mercer article noted an 8% increase. These projections are for the largest national employers and don't represent the local reality here in South Florida.
I am a local insurance consultant and in the last few months I have delivered 25% to 30% increases from Blue Cross and 20% increases from Unitedhealthcare for my small group renewals.
When I meet with my local clients they always refer to the media reports of 8% to 10% when in reality it is 3 times as much in South Florida.
In the future you are welcome to contact me to give you a local view on the reality here in South Florida.
Posted by: Don Calvert | September 8, 2008 1:14 PM
Hello from the local media. The problem we often have is there are no local projections. National is the best we can get. But if this helps, I know most South Florida firms are smaller businesses. Mercer's survey says small biz, with fewer than 500 employees, are facing a 10 percent average increase.
Posted by: Harriet | September 8, 2008 1:43 PM