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Premiums for job-based health insurance rose 6% this year, hitting an average of just about $27,000 per year for family coverage – which could affect 154 million people, finds a new KFF analysis.
On average, workers contribute $6,850 annually to the cost of family coverage, with employers paying the rest.
Family premiums are up $1,408 from last year, similar to the 7% increase recorded in each of the previous two years. This year’s increase compares to general inflation of 2.7% and wage growth of 4% over the same period.
Over the past five years, the cumulative increase in family premiums (26%) and in what workers pay toward family premiums (23%) is similar to inflation (23.5%) and wage growth (28.6%).
According to KFF, many employers may be bracing for higher costs next year, with insurers requesting double-digit increases in the small-group and individual markets on average. This could possibly foreshadow big increases in the large-group markets as well, KFF analysts said.
Employers continue to single out drug prices as a factor contributing to higher premiums in recent years.
Among large firms (those with at least 200 workers), more than a third (36%) say prescription drug prices contributed “a great deal” to higher premiums in recent years. Significant shares say the same about coverage for new prescription drugs (22%), as well as the prevalence of chronic disease (30%), higher utilization of services (26%) and hospital prices (22%).
WHAT'S THE IMPACT
About one in five (19%) of large firms offering health benefits say they covered costly GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy for weight loss in 2025. A majority (57%) say they do not cover such drugs for weight loss, while about a quarter (24%) are unsure if their largest plan covers them.
Among the biggest firms (those with at least 5,000 workers), 43% now say they cover GLP-1 drugs for weight loss in their largest plan, up from 28% in 2024.
The survey also found nearly three in 10 covered workers (29%) are now enrolled in high-deductible health plans that could be used with a tax-preferred Health Savings Account.
Among workers who face an annual deductible for single coverage, the average this year stands at $1,886, which compares to $1,773 last year. Deductibles are up 17% since 2020, when the average was $1,617.
On average, workers with a deductible at small firms (under 200 workers) face much larger deductibles than workers at larger firms ($2,631 versus $1,670). More than half (53%) of covered workers at small firms now face a deductible of at least $2,000, and more than a third (36%) face an average single deductible of at least $3,000.
In 2025, nearly three-quarters (72%) face an out-of-pocket maximum of more than $3,000 for single coverage, including one in five (21%) who face an out-of-pocket maximum of more than $6,000.
THE LARGER TREND
Affordable Care Act insurers are expected to increase premiums by almost 20% due to the end of premium tax credits, the effect of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and new marketplace rules, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
This is on top of rising healthcare and prescription drug costs.
These changes have led insurers to propose average gross premium increases of 18%, the largest premium hikes since 2017, the report said earlier this month.
More than 22 million people rely on ACA coverage for their health insurance, according to the report.
Meanwhile, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has said that Medicare Advantage premiums will decrease slightly next year, with the average monthly premium across all MA coverage projected to be $14, down from $16.40 in 2025, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Benefit options will remain stable, including MA supplemental benefit offerings such as hearing, dental and vision, said CMS.
Based on plans’ projections, enrollment in MA is projected to be 34 million in 2026, a decrease from 34.9 million in 2025, with MA enrollment representing approximately 48% of all people enrolled in Medicare, compared to 50% in 2025.