Workers Pay 14% More for Health Insurance in 2010

[Joanne98]

Sept. 2 (Bloomberg) -- American workers will pay about $4,000 to get health insurance for their families through work this year, 14 percent more than in 2009, according to a survey today from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Employees’ average share of premium costs for family coverage is $482 more than last year as economic conditions push companies to pay less of the bill, the report said. Total premiums for family policies, including both worker and employer contributions, increased 3 percent to $13,770.

Reducing health care costs was a promise of the health care overhaul law signed in March by U.S. President Barack Obama. That would require reversing a five-year trend. Health insurance premium increases have outpaced inflation and wage growth every year since 2005, according to the annual survey by the Menlo Park, California-based foundation.

“Businesses have been shifting more of the costs of health insurance to workers through premiums, deductibles and other cost-sharing,” said Drew Altman, Kaiser Family Foundation Chief Executive Officer, in a statement. “From a consumer perspective, the cost of health insurance just keeps going up faster than wages.”
http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20603037&sid=asXdf7wmtRVA

[Fumesucker]

1. Thank God It Passed.. n/t

[area51]

5. +1

Each day, 273 people die due to lack of health care in the U.S.; that's 100,000 deaths per year.

We need single-payer health care, not a welfare bailout for the serial-killer insurance agencies.

We don't need the GingrichCare of mandated, unregulated, for-profit insurance that is still too expensive, only pays parts of medical bills, denies claims, and bankrupts people. Republinazi '93 plan:

"Subtitle F: Universal Coverage - Requires each citizen or lawful permanent resident to be covered under a qualified health plan or equivalent health care program by January 1, 2005."

"We will never have real reform until people's health stops being treated as a financial opportunity for corporations."

[Count Olaf]

8. 100,000 deaths per year due to lack of health care! Why are we having a war of terror again?

It seems we have much bigger problems to deal with.

[gulliver]

9. Absolutely! Without it, the costs would have been much higher. n/t

[Fumesucker]

11. You do realize who originally posted that OP title?

What it was originally about?

And what they were?

Do you not?

[Enrique]

2. and they got less coverage

(...)

Even as workers pay more for their health insurance, they’re getting less coverage for their money. In 2010, 27 percent of employees had deductibles of at least $1,000 before coverage kicks in. Last year, only 22 percent of workers had such a requirement for the plans they get through work, according to the survey. Such cost-sharing strategies are meant to get consumers to use fewer health resources by making them more aware of the price.

(...)


And the article doesn't mention it, but the Health Insurance Industry had a really great year for profits. Funny how that works out.

[joeybee12]

3. Just as the oil has "dispersed" healthcare costs have "dispersed" n/t

[iamtechus]

4. My MEDICARE supplement insurance just went up about 16% nt

[piratefish08]

6. yea for HCR!

[DefenseLawyer]

7. Mine doubled

An individual family policy with Anthem. No claims. Doubled.

[whistler162]

10. Mine dropped by about 33%

different policy with a higher deductible, most of the deductible is put in a HSR by the company so I only need to cover about $300 of it.