A recent study by the Commonwealth Fund, a health-care research organization, shows workers in most states paid nearly 12% of median income for health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket expenses in 2020 compared with 9% in 2010, according to Bloomberg Law.
The report, State Trends in Employer Premiums and Deductibles, 2010-2020, found those health care costs take up 10% or more of median income in 37 states compared with 10 states a decade ago.
The report also found employer health coverage has been relatively stable during the COVID-19 pandemic, with only 6% of working-age adults losing employer health coverage and few becoming uninsured.
According to the study, rising health insurance costs and deductibles are fueled by high health care and drug prices.
Middle-income workers in Mississippi and New Mexico faced the highest potential costs relative to income at 19% and 18%, respectively. On average across all states, employees’ premium costs in 2020 amounted to 6.9% of income compared with 5.8% in 2010, and the average deductible for a middle-income household was 4.7% of income compared with 3.3% in 2010.
The average total cost of premiums and potential spending on deductibles rose to $8,070, with costs ranging from a low of $6,528 in Hawaii to a high of more than $9,000 in Florida, Kansas, Missouri, South Dakota and Texas for 2020.
In nearly half the states, middle-income households faced average deductibles equivalent to 5% or more of income compared with only one state in 2010.
