Kaiser Report Details the Increasing Disparity Between Health Costs and Payroll

A new Kaiser Family Foundation report details increases in health care costs relative to overall payroll. Between 2001 and 2007, wages increased by 19%, while health insurances costs increased by 78%. Growth in health care costs is an increasing financial burden on both employers and employees. Employers with 25 or fewer employees have been hit the hardest by these increases. Their health insurance costs as a portion of total payroll for covered employees increased by over 42 percent, compared to a 24.5 percent increase for the largest employers.

In addition, significant variations exist between professions. Between 1999 and 2005, the occupations that saw the greatest increases, as a portion of total payroll, were the ones that already spent the highest portion of payroll on health care, especially transportation and laborer/cleaner/helper occupations.

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