"Employer Attitudes and Practices Affecting Health Benefits and the Uninsured"
No author cited
Employee Benefit Research Institute, October 2002.
According to this study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, what employers think and do about providing health benefits to their workers has a profound effect on the overall number of people with and without coverage. The survey showed that many employers, knowing that couples often receive coverage concurrently at their respective jobs, are sensitive to the risk of drawing a disproportionate share of family dependents. Many of these companies offer financial incentives to discourage enrollment in their plans. Some employers also understand that passing on a greater share of health coverage costs to the employees will discourage low-wage workers to forgo with insurance. To combat this problem, some companies have experimented with a sliding scale model for premium contributions. The EBRI concludes that if, under current policy, the goal is to increase coverage levels, efforts need to be made to increase employer awareness of the correlation between providing health benefits and the success of their businesses and to encourage employer involvement in community-wide efforts to increase coverage levels.
