Wall Street Journal Examines Health Care Cost Shift From Employers to Workers

The Wall Street Journal Nov. 26 examines the "rude awakening" faced by many employees at large companies that have asked them to "take a hit" in their health insurance and retirement account benefits. Many large companies, faced with "meager profits and a sputtering economic recovery," have moved to reduce labor costs, such as health coverage. Companies such as Wal-Mart, Ford, General Motors and General Electric have begun to pass more of the cost of health insurance to employees through increased copayments and premiums and have reduced the amount of coverage provided. In addition, many companies have reduced health coverage and increased out-of-pocket costs for retirees, "who can't go on strike and who are living longer thanks in part to better, more expensive medical care," the Journal reports. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, individual employees today pay 27% more for health plan premiums than they did in 2001. However, the Journal reports that "employees aren't taking all the proposed cuts quietly"; for example, in response to a proposed increase in health insurance copayments, GE workers last month voted to authorize a strike "if necessary" (Lieber/Martinez, Wall Street Journal, 11/26).