Overview
- Workers now contribute an average of $6,850 toward family coverage, with the total premium averaging $26,993 after a 6% year-over-year increase.
- Over five years, family premiums rose about 26% and workers’ contributions 23%, roughly tracking inflation and wage growth over the same period.
- Employers cite prescription drugs and hospital prices as key cost drivers, and insurers’ double-digit rate requests in other markets signal the risk of larger increases next year.
- Coverage of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs expanded at the biggest firms to 43% of large plans, yet most report costs exceeded expectations and many are tightening access.
- Cost-sharing continues to shift to workers, with 29% enrolled in HSA-eligible high-deductible plans and an average single deductible of $1,886, while small-firm workers face higher deductibles and part-time and low-wage workers are less likely to get employer coverage, leaving Medicaid to fill some gaps.