INDIANAPOLIS — Employers who offer health insurance coverage could see a 9 percent cost increase next year, and their workers may face an even bigger hit, according to a report from consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Costs will rise in part because workers worried about losing their jobs are using their healthcare more while they still have it, the firm said in the report released to the Associated Press. The report also said rising unemployment is driving up medical costs.

Healthcare reform legislation currently being hashed out in Congress likely will have little impact on next year's costs, said PWC principal Michael Thompson. But he noted that the intense focus on healthcare may slow price increases.

The report projects the expected cost increase per person for employee benefits plans, and it includes factors like price increases and utilization changes.

Businesses will likely pass some of the burden to employees via higher premiums, deductibles or co-pays, Thompson said.

Among employers surveyed, 42 percent said they would increase employees' share of costs. PWC surveyed more than 500 employers and health insurers.