Kansas City, Kan. – Seventy-one percent of companies in Virginia had a health insurance premium increase, according to the Compensation Data 2007 – Maryland/Virginia annual survey of 260 employers. The newly released results reported the average premium increase was 9.9 percent for all plan types.
While health insurance premiums are rising, they have been increasing at a lower rate. In 2006, the average premium increase was 10.7 percent and then, 10.9 percent the previous year in Virginia. When comparing plans in 2007, 68.9 percent of organizations offering PPO plans saw an average increase of 9.2 percent, while HMO and POS plans had average premium increases of 10.5 and 11.1 percent respectively.
To contain rising costs, Virginia organizations utilized a variety of methods. The most highly used were wellness programs at 74.3 percent in 2007, while coordination of benefits was employed by 65.1 percent. Use of a network of health care professionals was prevalent, as 61.8 percent of organizations used it to contain costs.
The results showed 31.6 percent of Virginia companies increased the employee portion of the premium in their efforts to reduce costs. In addition, 26.3 of organizations increased deductible levels and 15.8 percent offered a choice of deductible levels. On average, employers contribute 11.5 percent of payroll toward the cost of health benefits, which is nearly the same cost to provide all of the following benefits: dental, pension, life, disability and other non-mandated benefits.
"Health insurance continues to be a concern for both employers and employees across the United States," said Amy Kaminski, manager of marketing programs for Compdata Surveys. "And as the presidential election approaches, candidates’ health care plans will remain a primary focus of debate. However, most companies are concerned with how to contain costs now, and in response, some states are exploring legislative measures."
About the Survey
Compensation Data 2007 – Maryland/Virginia contains data on 504 job titles ranging from entry-level to top executives. Information was collected on more than 381,000 employees across the both states. The results provide a comprehensive summary of pay data, benefits information and pay practices with an effective date of March 1, 2007.
Compdata Surveys is the nation’s leading compensation and benefits survey data provider. Data is collected annually from thousands of organizations across the country. Compdata Surveys has been providing accurate, reliable data at affordable prices to organizations from coast to coast since 1988. For further information about the compensation and benefits surveys, contact Lane Odle at (800) 300-9570 or lodle[at]compdatasurveys.com.
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