Health Care Costs Rising, Employees Get the Bill

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation today released their study, "Attitudes of Business Leaders Regarding Health Care Coverage" at a Capitol Hill briefing led by legislators, governors, and Fortune 500 executives. The survey of more than 600 business owners and benefits managers whose companies currently pay for at least some health insurance benefits shows that companies of all sizes expect health care costs to jump an additional 12 percent over the next year. Business owners surveyed say they will ask their employees to pay an average of 21 percent of the increase. According to figures from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research Educational Trust, premiums average $10,880 annually for family coverage ($907 per month) in 2005, and $4,024 ($335 per month) for individual coverage.  

What type of Health Care Reforms Do Business Leaders Support?  

Business leaders support a range of policy proposals. Among a range of policy proposals tested, business owners and benefits managers expressed strong support for granting tax credits to small businesses that offer insurance coverage, and for allowing the self-employed and small businesses to band together to purchase insurance. When asked which ideas would help "a lot" to increase the number of Americans with health coverage, business leaders responded:

- Allowing the self-employed and small businesses to purchase private health insurance at group rates. (53%)

- Providing tax incentives for small businesses to encourage them to provide health coverage to their employees. (41%)

- Enrolling more Americans who are eligible for government-funded health care programs. (27%)

- Expanding Medicaid coverage to include a greater number of lower-income Americans. (26%)

- Providing tax credits for low-income Americans to help them afford private insurance. (23%)

- Allowing Americans to set up tax-free health savings accounts. (21%)

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