CHIA Releases Massachusetts Employer Survey Results
DATE: June 26, 2019
The Center for Health Information and Analysis (CHIA) today announced the release of summary results from a statewide health benefits survey of Massachusetts employers. The Massachusetts Employer Survey (MES) provides a valuable lens on the employer health insurance market, including information on employer health insurance offerings, employee take-up rates, cost-sharing, plan characteristics, and employer decision making.
The 2018 MES has several key updates: inclusion of a panel sample to allow for longitudinal data analysis, additional questions regarding part-time workers' health insurance benefits, and improved comparability of its key measures to national benchmarks.
Key Findings
- In 2018, 71% of Massachusetts employers offered health insurance to their employees, in comparison to the offer rate of 65% in 2016. This is higher than the national offer rate of 57%.
- Among Massachusetts firms that offered health insurance in 2018, more than half of all employees (51%) were enrolled in their firms' health insurance (coverage rate).
- Overall, one in ten part-time employees enrolled in their employer's health plan.
- In Massachusetts, the 2018 average total monthly premium was $617 for single coverage and $1,687 for family coverage. The average percent employee contribution was 26% for single coverage and 30% for family coverage.
- In 2018, two in five Massachusetts employees were enrolled in a high deductible health plan (HDHP), and one in five were enrolled in an HDHP with a Health Reimbursement Account or a Health Savings Account.
This report is accompanied by a databook, a field report, the survey questionnaire, and an infographic.
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