Survey: Health-Care Premiums Jumped Over 10% In 2004

Yes, everyone knows that employee-sponsored health-care premiums jumped in 2004, but did you realize by how much? According to a new survey, premiums increased an average of 11.2%. That's actually down from the previous year's 13.9% increase but still the fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth, according to the 2004 Annual Employer Health Benefits Survey released by the Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust. Premiums reached an average of $9,950 for family coverage and $3,695 for single coverage, the survey shows. Family premiums for PPOs, which cover most workers, reached $10,217 annually for a family, up from $9,317 in 2003. The survey also noted that workers on average contributed $558 of the annual average premium cost for single coverage and $2,661 of the $9,950 cost of premiums for family coverage.