Health Premiums Rise slower, but Workers Shoulder More of Cost with Higher deductibles and co-pays

[Teamster Jeff]

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While employers are trying various strategies to contain health care costs, shifting more expenses to employees is one of the main tools. “Increasing cost-sharing is the tried and true way to keep their premiums down,” said Drew Altman, president of Kaiser Family Foundation. “We’re seeing a steady, slow increase in cost-sharing every year.”

According to Commonwealth, out-of-pocket costs — including workers’ premium contributions and deductibles — accounted for 9.6 percent of median household income in 2013, on average, up from 5.3 percent in 2003. (That does not include items like co-payments or co-insurance, which would have increased these costs further.)

That is the case even though the growth of overall premium increases has slowed.
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http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/08/business/health-premiums-rise-more-slowly-but-workers-shoulder-more-of-cost.html?_r=0

[Warren Stupidity]

1. They aren't co pays any more, they are just pays.

Our health care system is a joke.