About 165 million Americans get their health insurance through work, and yet most don't spend much time considering what their employer is offering in the way of benefits and what it will cost. In fact, employees only spent about 45 minutes a year, on average, deciding which benefit options suit them best, a report from Aon found. Open enrollment season, which typically runs through early December, is an opportunity to take a closer look at what's at stake. And, for starters, costs are going way up.
Costs are rising
The cost of health care has been rising steadily for years. More recently, there's been a noticeable jump. For employers, those cost increases are reaching a post-pandemic high, according to WTW, a consulting firm formerly known as Willis Towers Watson. U.S. employers project their health-care costs will increase by 7.7% in 2025, compared with 6.9% in 2024 and 6.5% in 2023, the firm said. Because of higher costs, employers are considering new ways to adjust their plan offerings, WTW found. To that point, 52% of companies said they plan to implement programs that will reduce total costs, and just as many intend to steer to lower-cost providers and sites of care, which may mean a narrower network of doctors from which to choose. Currently, employers subsidize about 81% of health-care plan costs, on average, while employees pay the remainder, according to professional services firm Aon. However, some of the higher costs will also inevitably get passed on to employees. More from Personal Finance:
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