Health insurance premiums up 15%, study says
By Greg Wiles
Advertiser Staff Writer
Health insurance premiums for Hawai'i families increased by 15 percent during the first half of this decade, or about half of the national rate, a new study done for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation shows.
The report found the local increase in the average family's health insurance premiums was among the lowest nationally and compared with an about 30 percent increase nationally.
Hawai'i generally comes out favorably compared to other states in the report with annual premiums that were among the lowest nationwide and among the highest number of people under 65 enrolled in private health insurance coverage.
Under Hawai'i state law, employers must offer full-time workers health insurance coverage, resulting in a higher portion of people covered by worker plans than anywhere in the country, according to the study statistics.
Still, employers and employees in Hawai'i and other states have been complaining about rising healthcare costs.
"This study makes plain what every working parent knows —that providing insurance coverage takes a bigger bite from the family budget every year," said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president and chief executive officer of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
The report found:
The report was released to coincide with a campaign organized by the foundation, Cover the Uninsured Week. Nationally it is estimated that 47 million people are without health insurance. In Hawai'i that number in 2005 and 2006 averaged about 107,000.
The report was compiled for the foundation by researchers at the University of Minnesota, who analyzed government data.
Reach Greg Wiles at gwiles@honoluluadvertiser.com.
