New AHRQ Chartbook Examines Trends in Coverage, Premiums and Benefits

AHRQ‘s newly released Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)Insurance Component Chartbook 2015 describes trends in employer-sponsored coverage, premiums and benefits from 2003 to 2015, with easily accessible graphs and maps to facilitate trend comparisons. The data show that from 2014 to 2015, the overall percentage of private-sector employees covered by a health insurance plan offered by their employer remained at about 48 percent, while the number of enrollees increased from 55.8 million in 2014 to 57.3 million in 2015, as overall employment increased. The percentage of employees working at employers that offer insurance (the “offer rate") increased overall from 83.2 percent in 2014 to 83.8 percent in 2015. The offer rate at firms with 100 or more employees increased from 97.3 percent to 98.8 percent during 2014-2015, while offer rates at firms with fewer than 50 employees declined from 49.8 percent to 47.6 percent. Meanwhile, relatively slow growth in premiums continued from 2014 to 2015, with premium increases ranging from 2.2 percent for employee-only coverage to 4.0 percent for family coverage. The MEPS-Insurance Component is a nationally representative annual survey of private employers and state and local governments. Access the chartbook.