Current trends indicate employment-based health insurance - the most common form of health insurance coverage - is slowly eroding and will likely continue to do so.

According to new research from the nonpartisan Employee Benefits Research Institute, 61 percent of working-age Americans (including workers and their family members) had health coverage through a job in 2008, down 1 percentage point from a year earlier. That's also more than 7 percentage points from the high of 68 percent in 2000, and lower than the 64 percent level of 1994, when former President Clinton last attempted health reform. Research implies a weak economy and growing unemployment will fuel this continuing decline.

While fewer people working no doubt means fewer individuals with access to health benefits in the workplace, EBRI indicates an increasing number of workers are likely to forego coverage even when it's available, as they face uncertainty regarding the economy, the future of job security and the possibility of health reform.

"Employers report that offering benefits has a positive impact on worker recruitment, retention, health status, and productivity," writes Paul Fronstin, director of the EBRI health research and education program in EBRI's current Issue Brief. However, "Employers may believe in the business case for providing health benefits today, but in the future they may rethink the value that offering coverage provides, especially if health costs continue to escalate sharply or if health reform changes the value proposition."

Fronstin's study is based on year-end 2008 data from the U.S. Census Bureau's March 2009 Current Population Survey (the latest available), with some analysis based on other Census surveys.

Even before the recession, economic vulnerability was increasing, especially among low- and middle-income families. According to the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED), the number of individuals nation-wide with employer-provided health insurance fell sharply nationally, from 63.2 percent to 60.9 in recent years before 2008's historical meltdown.

But there are certain states outranking all others when it comes to key aspects related to their financial stability, including the number of workers receiving employment-based health insurance.

CFED's 2009-2010 "Assets & Opportunity Scorecard" ranks the 50 states and the District of Columbia on 58 performance measures in the areas of Financial Assets & Income, Businesses & Jobs, Housing & Homeownership, Health Care and Education. In addition, the Scorecard also assesses states on the strength of its policies to help individuals and families build financial security.

Those states that earned an overall "A" in performance measures were Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming. Almost 90 percent of employers in Hawaii, for example, offer health care benefits to their employees, as compared to only 40.1 percent in Montana.

Instant Insights /

Employment-based health coverage falls 7 percent since 2000

More From HR Executive

Related Stories

Recommended For You