Small Businesses Offering More High-Deductible Plans
About 60% of the 45 million uninsured U.S. residents "come from families where the primary breadwinner owns or works for a small business," as "the percentage of small businesses offering coverage is plunging," the Chicago Tribune reports. Because of increasing insurance costs, "a growing percentage of small businesses are turning to insurance plans with deductibles of $1,000 or more for individual coverage and $2,000 or more for family coverage," the Tribune reports, adding that some small businesses are offering plans with $5,000 deductibles.
Gary Claxton, a Kaiser Family Foundation vice president, said, "Health insurance becomes less affordable every year."
Some companies have begun offering wellness incentives, health reimbursement arrangements, health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts to address increasing insurance costs (Meyer, Chicago Tribune, 5/16).