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Employer healthcare cost increases at fifteen year low. Cause cited is Obamacare.

Courtesy of Forbes:

U.S. employers this year face their “smallest increases in health care costs in 15 years,” according to a new survey showing the latest evidence of health inflation slowing.

Towers Watson (TW), an employee benefits consulting firm and the National Business Group on Health, an association of large employers, said the cost of providing employer-sponsored benefits will rise 4.4 percent this year. Employer costs, which were $9,157 last year, are projected to rise to $9,560 in 2014.

The trend comes as employers move to higher deductible health care plans that make workers think twice about choosing expensive tests and procedures, forcing employees to become better health care shoppers. Employers are also installing additional new strategies to encourage wellness activities such as financial incentives to stop smoking.

“To find more effective ways to manage health costs, many employers are focusing on reshaping their health strategy for the next three to five years,” said Towers Watson senior health care consultant Ron Fontanetta of the survey of 595 large U.S. employers that have more than 11 million full-time workers, including 7.8 million enrolled in health benefits.

Most respondents to the survey are “recalibrating their health strategy” with 18 percent having either adopted a new strategy or updated an existing one, the Towers Watson executive summary of the report said. Another 57 percent of respondents are “in process,” the summary added.

Two in five respondents cite the Affordable Care Act as the primary driver of their health care strategy.

Still, the survey shows little evidence that these large employers will drop coverage for their workers and send employees to the public exchanges under the health law to buy insurance. The vast majority, or 95 percent, of respondents said subsidizing health care coverage is a “very important” part of their benefits packages for active employees.

So to sum up, employer health care costs are rising at the slowest rate in fifteen years, employees are becoming better health care shoppers and making better choices concerning their health, and despite Republican propaganda employers have no intention of dropping employee health care plans.

And don't forget, this is being reported in Forbes Magazine, which is not exactly known for their cheerleading on behalf of Obamacare.

Time for your checkup Mr. President.

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