Premium, 'out-of-pocket' costs for U.S. workers to increase by 9% in 2009, according to study

The combined average premium and out-of-pocket costs for health coverage for a U.S. worker are projected to increase by nearly 9% in 2009, to $3,826 per year, according to an annual study by Hewitt Associates, the Chicago Tribune reports.

For the study, Hewitt evaluated data on employer-sponsored health plans from more than 300 major businesses with an average of 16,000 employees, encompassing more than 13 million health plan members.

According to the study, premium contributions for workers enrolled in individual plans are expected to increase by 8% to an average of $1,946 per year, or $162 monthly, and out-of-pocket costs are projected to increase by 10.1% to $156 per month. The study also projected that health insurance costs for companies will increase by 6.4% in 2009 to $8,863 per employee.

The Tribune reports that premiums and out-of-pocket expenses for workers have tripled in the last decade. Craig Dolezal, principal in Hewitt's health-management practice, said, "People are getting hit from all over the place," adding, "Companies are hunkering down through this." Analysts say that increases in workers' health plan contributions come from employers shifting costs to employees in the forms of higher deductibles or copayments. According to Hewitt, to encourage employees to use urgent care centers and retail health clinics, companies are increasing copays to $250 or higher for emergency department visits (Japsen, Chicago Tribune, 9/21).

The study is available online.