Health benefit cost rose 3.2% in 2022, but employers see bigger increases ahead, mercer survey

New york--( business wire )--the average per-employee cost of employer-sponsored health insurance rose by 3.2% in 2022, according to mercer's 2022 national survey of employer-sponsored health plans, released today (fig 1). last year saw a spike in cost growth (to 6.3%) as individuals caught up on healthcare needs delayed as a result of the pandemic. while this year's increase may seem like a return to normal trend, it is far below general inflation, which is averaging about 8% for 2022. typically, health benefit cost growth runs higher than general inflation. according to sunit patel, chief health actuary at mercer, 2022 is an anomaly because employer health plan sponsors haven't felt the full impact of inflation yet.
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