Why patients with employer-sponsored insurance may struggle to afford it

A new 50-state analysis shows that employee costs for health insurance offered through their job — the primary source of coverage for more than half of all people in the United States — rose sharply and outpaced inflation from 2023 to 2024, the latest data available.

Annual premiums for family coverage offered through employers rose to $24,540 last year, an increase of more than $600 from the year prior. Premiums for individuals increased by more than $300 to $8,486. The analysis of trends in employer-sponsored insurance (ESI) was prepared by researchers from the State Health Access Data Assistance Center at the University of Minnesota.

Employers in several states saw premium increases that outpaced the national average. Delaware employers and their workers saw the largest increase in family premiums, rising by more than $5,800 from $22,049 to $27,859 — an increase of more than 26%. Alabama and Rhode Island also top the list of states seeing significant year-over-year premium increases.

Researchers say deductibles grew even faster than premiums, rising an average of 8% for both individual and family coverage. The average annual deductible for family coverage surpassed $4,000 for the first time in 2024, the result of a $330 increase over the year prior.

The analysis shows that more than half of private-sector workers (51.7%) enrolled in ESI are now in high-deductible health plans, which offer lower monthly premiums but expose people to significantly higher out-of-pocket costs. Enrollment in high-deductible plans now exceeds 60% in 22 states.

Experts say the findings come at a time when rising health care costs have emerged as a top consumer and policymaker concern. Yet ESI is often overlooked in policy debates with a greater focus on coverage provided through the Affordable Care Act and public health programs like Medicare and Medicaid.