CHIA: Mass. employers offer more health insurance, but at a higher cost and with lower participation rates
Photo I Courtesy of Martha Dominguez de Gouveia / State House News Source
More Massachusetts employers offer health insurance than the national average but with higher premiums and lower employer contributions.
Employer-sponsored insurance is more accessible in Massachusetts employees than in the nation overall, but it comes at a price.
In 2024, 67% of Massachusetts firms offered health insurance to their employees, a rate 13 percentage points higher than the nation’s 54%, according to a study released Thursday by the state’s Center for Health Information and Analysis. However, those workers faced an average monthly premium of $789 as opposed to the national average of $746 with those Massachusetts employees contributing a larger amount to their premiums at 24% versus 15%.
CHIA’s 2024 Massachusetts Employer Survey is a biennial report analyzing and challenges from a representative sample of employers offering health insurance and related benefits to their employees.
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“More Massachusetts employers are offering health insurance than their counterparts nationally, reflecting their long-standing commitment to coverage,” Lauren Peters, executive director of CHIA, said in a Thursday press release. “However, the 2024 survey data shows that rising healthcare costs continue to present significant challenges to employers, affecting their ability to continue providing affordable and comprehensive coverage options to their employees.”
While employees in Massachusetts are averaging higher monthly insurance bills, they benefit from lower average annual deductibles than the nation overall. The average Massachusetts employee must cover $1,354 deductible versus the national average of $1,787.
Small companies of three to 199 full- and part-time employees were less likely to offer health insurance and offered fewer options than large companies categorized by 200 or more full- and part-time workers. Sixty-six percent of small firms offered coverage, with 60% of those businesses offering one health care plan as opposed to the 94% of large firms providing health insurance with 17% of those firms only offering one plan option.
Though 67% of Massachusetts firms offered insurance, a sizable amount of their employees didn’t take them up on the offer. Of the 83% of employees eligible for their employer’s health insurance plan, 68% took advantage in 2024, according to the report.
The state’s take-up rate was 7 percentage points lower than the nation’s rate of 75%. Though the study did not investigate the specific reasons 32% of eligible employees decided to opt out of their employer-provided care, possible reasons include the individual’s coverage through a family member’s employer, through unsubsidized non-group coverage, through MassHealth, or the individual may be uninsured altogether.
Mica Kanner-Mascolo is a staff writer at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the healthcare and diversity, equity, and inclusion industries.
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