According to healthcare consultants' forecasts, US employers are preparing for the most significant rise in health insurance expenses in ten years next year. However,

in a tight labor market, workers may experience some relief this time.

Benefit consultants from Mercer, Aon, and Willis Towers Watson anticipate that employer healthcare costs will surge by 5.4% to 8.5% in 2024, primarily due to medical inflation, increased demand for expensive weight-loss medications, and broader accessibility to high-priced gene therapies.

A survey conducted by Mercer, a subsidiary of Marsh McLennan, revealed that more than two-thirds of employers do not intend to shift the entire cost increase to their employees or will transfer less than the anticipated rise in 2024. Mercer's Director of Health & Benefits Research, Beth Umland, explained that employers are hesitant to impose additional financial strain on employees, particularly during a period when they heavily rely on health benefits to retain their workforce, given the prevailing inflation. Photo by Jayzze, Wikimedia commons.