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June 26, 2006
LOS ANGELES - A new report from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research shows that although California mid-size employers seeking to provide insurance for employees face unique challenges, their biggest barrier is the same one facing nearly all business in the state: high costs. Researchers used existing research and stakeholder surveys to paint a picture of the health insurance challenges facing firms with 51 to 250 employees.
"Mid-size firms with poor experience have a harder time obtaining reasonable quotes," said Naderah Pourat, PhD, lead author of the study and a senior research scientist at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. "This problem is concentrated in industries with more low-income workers."
The authors note the tremendous challenge of high costs of health insurance for every California business but specifically discuss potential regulatory solutions to address the barriers faced by midsize firms.
The report was produced in collaboration with Millman, Inc. with support from the California HealthCare Foundation.
Although mid-size firms are thought to face unique challenges to insuring their employees due to lack of regulatory protection and lack of negotiating power, researchers found that in fact, the mid-size firms are faring fairly well in the market. In fact, mid-size firms provide a higher rate of access to insurance than both small and large firms.
However, researchers found that certain subgroups of mid-size firms may face challenges to the provision of health insurance for their employees, specifically mid-size firms in service, retail and wholesale industries and those with high percentages of low-income employees.
The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research was established in 1994 and is one of the nation's leading health policy research centers. It is also the premier source of key health policy information for California. The Center is based in the UCLA School of Public Health and is affiliated with the UCLA School of Public Affairs.
View the report:
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