The Average Annual Premiums Employees Pay for Health Coverage

Employer-sponsored health insurance is a major benefit of a job. For many, the cost of purchasing insurance individually is far too high and isn't an option. The cost to employees of employer-sponsored health insurance plans is on the rise.

Employer Contribution

• As of March 2010, private-sector employers must pay 80 percent of premiums for individual health insurance programs and 70 percent of the premiums for family programs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The employee is responsible for paying the remainder.

Average Premiums

• As of September 2010, employees have paid on average $3,997 in annual health insurance premiums for family plans and $899 for individual plans, approximately 30 percent of total premiums.

Yearly Increases

• Employees' share of health insurance premiums has increased from 2009 to 2010 by 14 percent, despite a mere three percent increase in the actual premium. Human resource consulting firm Hewitt Associates projects that in 2011, the employee responsibility for health insurance premiums will rise to an average 45 percent.