Employers say the cost of health-care plans will grow 5 percent next year. For large companies, that comes to an average cost of more than $14,000 per employee. The increases, reported in a new survey of 148 large companies, were attributed largely to expensive specialty drugs and individuals with high medical costs.
The average 5 percent hike is modest in comparison to the double-digit premium increases that insurers that sell plans in the Affordable Care Act marketplaces have been requesting, citing threats by the White House to discontinue federal subsidies.
"It's the fifth year in a row that employers are saying their costs will rise 5 percent. It's not great, because it's still multiples of wage increases and general inflation ... but it's not the volatility you're seeing in the public exchanges," said Brian Marcotte, president of the National Business Group on Health, a nonprofit organization whose members are large employers, including 72 Fortune 100 companies.
