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Employer and worker health plan costs expected to jump in 2027
CBS News • • business
Key Points:
- Employers in the U.S. are expected to face an average 8.2% increase in total health benefit costs per employee in 2027, the steepest rise since 2003, according to Marsh's survey.
- To manage rising costs, 59% of employers plan to implement cost-saving measures like raising deductibles, which typically increase employees' out-of-pocket expenses despite lowering monthly premiums.
- The surge in health plan costs is driven by higher treatment expenses for serious illnesses, reduced competition among health providers, and soaring prices of prescription drugs, including GLP-1 medications.
- Employees are likely to pay more for medical coverage in 2027 through higher paycheck deductions and out-of-pocket costs, as employers share increased expenses with workers, maintaining a roughly 80/20 cost split.
- Workers are projected to spend an average of $5,300 annually on health insurance in 2024, a 7.9% increase from the previous year, marking the largest rise in a decade, according to Aon's forecast.
