For individuals, the average employer-sponsored plan in 2014 costs $6,025, according to the Employer Health Benefits Survey. That was a 2% bump over last year. Of that amount, workers are responsible for $1,081.
“These findings are positive and reflect a general slowing in healthcare costs overall,” Maulik Joshi, president of HRET and senior vice president for research at the American Hospital Association, said in a statement. “As we work to improve healthcare, making sure it remains affordable to Americans is critically important to ensure greatest access by all.”
The survey also provides fresh evidence of the increasing prevalence of high-deductible plans among employer-sponsored coverage. The average deductible is $1,217 this year, an increase of 47% since 2009. Just over 40% of workers had deductibles of at least $1,000, while 18% faced deductibles of at least $2,000.
Starting next year, employers with at least 100 full-time workers (defined as working at least 30 hours a week) could face penalties under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act if they do not offer health coverage and their employees obtain subsidized coverage through the state and federal exchanges. Those penalties will be extended to companies with at least 50 workers starting in 2016. The survey found that 94% of employers with at least 100 workers offer health benefits to at least some workers and that just over half of employers with at least 50 workers offer some form of health benefits.
The survey also found that fewer workers are enrolled in “grandfathered” plans that don't meet the coverage requirements of the ACA. Roughly a quarter of workers are in such plans, down from 48% two years earlier.
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