Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

December 2, 2008 7:40:38 PM CST

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

US Health Costs to Rise 5.7% in '09

Posted Sep 4, 08 1:45 PM CDT in Business 

(AP) – Get ready for another increase in co-pays and deductibles. A survey being released today found that 59% of employers intend to keep down rising health care costs by sharing them with workers. Costs will go up by an average 5.7% for both parties next year, rising faster than inflation or wages.

Between 2003 and 2007, the average deductible for an individual grew from $250 to $400.  Health plans are offering cost-cutting choices such as disease management plans and incentives for greater use of prescription drugs, “but there's certainly still more work to be done," a health insurance spokesman says.

Source Associated Press

1 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Critics Rip Gender Gap in Health Insurance Charges

    Oct 30, 08 3:04 AM CDT
    Critics Rip Gender Gap in Health Insurance Charges Health advocates and some politicians are crying foul over the huge price difference between men's and women's health insurance, the New York Times reports. Healthy young women are regularly charged up to 50% more than their male counterparts, even when maternity care is excluded. The practice is prohibited under job-based insurance plans, but is standard in the individual insurance market.
    More »

  • Docs Stop Taking Insurance, Offer 'Boutique' Care

    Oct 26, 08 3:18 PM CDT
    Docs Stop Taking Insurance, Offer 'Boutique' Care Increasing numbers of doctors are bagging the insurance model to offer much better service to fewer patients, at a much higher cost, the Baltimore Sun reports. Many doctors are struggling to pay their own bills, and the quality of service they offer patients is suffering. But such “boutique” care threatens to create two separate medical systems. “I just think it’s morally wrong,” says one patient.
    More »

  • The Win-Win Economics of Medical Tourism

    Aug 15, 08 2:28 PM CDT
    The spread of “medical tourism”—uninsured and underinsured patients seeking cheap health care in Southeast Asia or Latin America—has fueled fears that developing nations will divert resources from state health systems caring for their own citizens. But, the Economist argues, “if governments make the best of the boom, then medical tourism should improve the health of rich and poor alike.”
    More »

  • In Sickness and for Health Insurance

    Aug 13, 08 9:08 AM CDT
    In Sickness and for Health Insurance Health insurance worries are pushing a growing number of Americans both into and out of marriages, the New York Times reports. Couples in which one party has better health benefits are marrying hastily as medical needs outweigh any doubts about each other. One survey this year found health insurance was a major factor in 7% of weddings, and one wedding chapel owner says 1 in 10 couples come before him for health reasons.
    More »

  • US Insurers Warming to Medical Tourism

    Jun 30, 08 2:26 PM CDT
    US Insurers Warming to Medical Tourism If you’re in need of high-priced surgery, your insurance company might have a plane ticket for you. Insurers are starting to warm to “medical tourism” for the same reason uninsured Americans are: Surgery is significantly cheaper overseas. At least 150,000 Americans go abroad for medical procedures every year; insurance typically covers just a handful, but the number is rising rapidly, MSNBC reports. More »

Health insurance companies are trying to offer incentives and management plans to cut rising costs.   (AP Photo/Bob Child)
59% of companies surveyed said they would increase workers' co-pays if health care costs go up.   (Shutter stock)
Health care costs will go up by 5.7% for both employers and workers next year, a Mercer study shows.   (Shutter stock)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Threads (
1
 of 2)

Tags

health insurance • health care costs • employers • health insurance costs


Loading...

Premium Articles from HighBeam

Find more articles like this

Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Other Business Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser a team of editors and writers culls the most important stories from hundreds of U.S. and international sources and reduces them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. It's the Newser guarantee: we can take any report or column or video and pack what you need to know into 120 words or less. Newser's short-form aggregation, visual format, and unique information tools help you get more of the kind of news you want, in a quicker and more entertaining way. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »