Why My Employer Offers Health Insurance But I Can’t Afford It?
As an employee, you may feel perplexed when your employer offers health insurance benefits, but you still cannot afford it. The situation can be frustrating, especially when you have increased healthcare expenses. Sadly, you are not alone.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the average annual premium for employer-sponsored health insurance was around $7,200 for an individual in 2020, and $20,500 for a family. This is a significant amount, and unfortunately, many employees do not have enough disposable income to cover this expense.
High Healthcare Deductibles
One reason why you may struggle to afford your employer-offered health insurance is high deductibles. Many employers design their healthcare plans to minimize their costs, which means employees bear the brunt of paying for their healthcare expenses. Thus, even if you have health insurance, you may still face substantial out-of-pocket costs before your insurance kicks in.
Additionally, your employer’s health insurance plan may have a high out-of-network deductible or coinsurance. This can make using an out-of-network provider incredibly expensive, leading to stress on your budget.
Low-Income Employees
Another reason why you may struggle to afford health insurance from your employer is that you are a low-income earner. If your salary is not enough to cover your basic needs, paying for health insurance premiums, copays, and deductibles may put further stress on your budget.
Unfortunately, many employers do not offer their employees more affordable alternatives. Additionally, some employers do not provide healthcare benefits at all, leaving low-income earners without accessible healthcare solutions.
Employers’ Cost-Cutting Practices
It is essential to note that many employers design their healthcare plans to minimize their costs. This means employees must cover a significant portion of their healthcare expenses. Additionally, many employers may only offer plans with high deductibles or choose plans with limited coverage.
Moreover, employers may shift healthcare costs onto their employees, resulting in higher deductibles and copays. This cost-cutting practice can be counterproductive when employees neglect their healthcare due to financial constraints, resulting in high healthcare costs for both the employees and employers in the long run.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) Can Help
If you cannot afford your employer-offered health insurance, you may qualify for tax credits to help you get more affordable coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Health Insurance Marketplace. An individual who earns less than $51,040 annually, or a family of four earning less than $104,800, may qualify for such financial assistance.
Additionally, under the ACA, employer-sponsored healthcare plans have to meet minimum coverage standards. Therefore, exploring the ACA marketplaces is an excellent way to find healthcare coverage options that suit your budget and offers the benefits you need – without costing a fortune.
Conclusion
In conclusion, being offered employer-offered healthcare benefits is a significant benefit; however, that may not be enough to help everyone get affordable healthcare. Factors such as deductibles, low-income, and cost-cutting practices by the employer may make healthcare unaffordable for many employees.
Nonetheless, the Affordable Care Act can help mitigate some of these challenges by offering financial assistance and minimum coverage standard requirements. It is essential to explore the ACA marketplaces to find healthcare coverage options that fit your financial needs without breaking the bank.
