In Brief: Employer Premiums Rise Modestly; Support For Props. 45, 46 Waning

Employer Health Premiums Rise Modestly This Year

Premiums for family health plans whose cost is paid for by employer increased a modest 3 percent in 2014 compared to last year, according to a new survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health, Research and Educational Trust.

Altogether, the average annual premium for family coverage paid for by an employer reached $16,834 during this year.  The average annual premium for a single employee was $6,025, which rose about 2.5%.

“The relatively slow growth in premiums this year is good news for employers and workers, though many workers now pay more when they get sick as deductibles continue to rise and skin-in-the-game insurance gradually becomes the norm,” said Kaiser Family Foundation Chief Executive Drew Altman.

Eighty percent of those covered by employer coverage had a general annual deductible. It averaged $1,217, up 47% since 2009.

According to the survey, 58% of the more than 2,000 respondent employers said they had shopped for a new health plan in the past year, “suggesting that the market is quite dynamic,” according to the survey.

Support For Props. 45, 46 Waning

A new Field Poll suggests that support for two healthcare-related ballot initiatives may be declining precipitously.

According to the poll of 467 registered voters, support for Proposition 45, which would give power to the California Insurance Commissioner to regulate health plan rates, has dropped to 41%, down from 70% earlier this year. Twenty-six percent are opposed, and 33% remain undecided. Health plans have raised more than $37 million in an attempt to defeat the measure.

Support for Proposition 46, which would raise the cap on non-economic damages in medical malpractice suits from $250,000 to more than $1.1 million and subject physicians to random drug testing, fell from 58% in favor to 34%. A total of 37% of voters are opposed, and 29% are undecided. That measure is opposed by a coalition of physician lobbies and civil liberties groups.

L.A. Homeless Groups Will Receive $215 Million In Additional Grants

Homeless organizations in the Los Angeles area will be getting a long-term financial boost in the form of $214 million in grants to be distributed over the next 15 years.

The money, which will be distributed via the United Way's “Home for Good” initiative, is being contributed by a variety of charitable organizations in the Los Angeles area.

The money will be used to create more housing vouchers for the homeless, as well as strengthening a network of organizations that try and match housing to the individual needs of those who are living on the streets.

Several studies have shown that homeless people provided with housing have much lower healthcare costs moving forward.