Health Premiums Rise Faster Than Earnings

The cost of family health coverage far outpaced the growth in median wages for Pennsylvania workers from 2000-2009. A report complied for Families U.S.A, a non-profit organization for health care consumers, shows that during this decade, employers' portion of annual premiums jumped by 83.5% while the worker's portion of the cost of insurance surged by 143.7%. During the same period, median earnings rose by 17.5%.
Families U.S.A. Executive Director Ron Pollack says while the premium costs are rising, people are getting "thinner coverage"......"That's coverage that offers fewer benefits and comes with higher deductibles, co-payments and co-insurance. So while workers are paying more and more for health coverage, they are getting less and less."
Pollack says rising health care costs are threatening the financial well-being of families in Pennsylvania and across the county..."If health care reform does not happen soon, more and more families will be priced out of the health coverage they used to take for granted."
Pollack says the rising costs of premiums also hurt employers efforts to increase workers' pay.