This is really important. Pulled from the underlying study[1], employers cover 82%/70% (individual/family) of the cost of healthcare. Those numbers are down just slightly from 86%/73% in 2019.
Or, put another way, employers have borne 69%/80% of the cost of healthcare increases. You complain because your individual plan has gone up by $986 in 20 years? Your employer's cost has gone up $4,005. Oh, and that's with cutting the underlying coverage ("skimpier").
It negatively impacts wage growth because that extra $4k is a bottom-line benefit (or cost of employment, if you want to think about it that way).
Finally, note the disparity between individual and family plans. Employers are offering 2.5x more benefit—nearly $9,000 more—to workers with families.
Fig. 1.10 shows premiums increasing from $2,196/$5,791 in 2019 to $7,188/$20,576. (Note also that 72% of that is attributed to premium increases vs. inflation and worker earnings, per Fig. 1.14.) Fig 6.1 shows % of premium paid by workers going from 14%/27% to 18%/30%.
The benefit for employers is there are a lot of workers who are there now solely for their family health insurance coverage. I have a feeling this has prevented earlier action by employers, but now it’s past the tipping point.
> Finally, note the disparity between individual and family plans. Employers are offering 2.5x more benefit—nearly $9,000 more—to workers with families.
Interestingly, my employer discloses the full premium that they pay to the health insurer every year. As an employee without a partner/dependents (I just graduated college/started my career), my employer spends ~$17k/year less on my health/dental/vision benefits than employees with a partner/dependents.
That effective pay difference makes me mildly salty.
It's an interesting topic, particularly as it relates to employers being women/family-friendly. How do you feel about parental leave, for instance?
Of course, this is a benefit that's within your control: just get a partner/dependent! And the flip side is that even individual employees might value knowing that the company "has your back" as your family situation changes.
Or, more bluntly, your company has to offer disparate benefits, because other employers do, and no employee with a family would work for your company otherwise.
Of course, all this masks the REAL problem that employers and healthcare are so intertwined. Even this article puts some of the blame on employers, when really it's the healthcare companies and the overall rising cost of care.
Or, put another way, employers have borne 69%/80% of the cost of healthcare increases. You complain because your individual plan has gone up by $986 in 20 years? Your employer's cost has gone up $4,005. Oh, and that's with cutting the underlying coverage ("skimpier").
It negatively impacts wage growth because that extra $4k is a bottom-line benefit (or cost of employment, if you want to think about it that way).
Finally, note the disparity between individual and family plans. Employers are offering 2.5x more benefit—nearly $9,000 more—to workers with families.
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[1] http://files.kff.org/attachment/Report-Employer-Health-Benef...
Fig. 1.10 shows premiums increasing from $2,196/$5,791 in 2019 to $7,188/$20,576. (Note also that 72% of that is attributed to premium increases vs. inflation and worker earnings, per Fig. 1.14.) Fig 6.1 shows % of premium paid by workers going from 14%/27% to 18%/30%.