According to the Epoch Times on August 21, 2026, the healthcare expenses of American employees in 2026 continue to rise, with the forecast for 2027 indicating even steeper increases. Several independent welfare consulting organizations’ latest surveys all indicate that U.S. employers’ healthcare costs are expected to see the largest single-year surge in over a decade next year, with employees’ premium deductions and out-of-pocket medical expenses also rising accordingly.
The International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) survey released in August reveals that U.S. employers anticipate a 10% increase in median healthcare costs in 2027, consistent with the foundation’s prediction for 2026 made last year.
A survey conducted by the benefits consulting company Milliman in July of this year shows that the median estimated trend in healthcare plan costs for 2027 is 9.9%, the highest in 15 years. The trend for prescription drug costs is estimated to be even higher at 11.5%, primarily driven by the rising costs of specialty drugs and the expanded indications for GLP-1 class weight-reduction drugs.
Mercedes-Benz, a welfare consulting firm, released a survey in June of this year indicating that two-thirds of the surveyed large enterprises (with over 500 employees) plan to increase employees’ premium deductions in 2027. Additionally, 48% of employers stated they would raise deductibles or other out-of-pocket items.
PwC’s annual healthcare cost trend report suggests that the anticipated cost increase in the commercial group insurance market in 2027 will be 9%, the largest single-year increase in 17 years. The individual insurance market is expected to increase by 8.5%. The report surveyed actuaries from 27 health insurance companies covering over 130 million insured employees.
Although the specific numbers range from 8.5% to 11.5% among the aforementioned surveys with different organizations and samples, the consensus points to the healthcare cost increase for U.S. employers next year being the highest in over a decade.
Several surveys point to similar factors contributing to the cost increase. PwC’s report highlights the trend of prescription drug costs surpassing overall medical cost trends; GLP-1 drug prescriptions nearly doubled from December 2025 to the same period the previous year; and the usage of behavior health services has increased by 62% since 2018.
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal on August 21, a survey by the consulting firm WTW suggests that U.S. employers expect a healthcare cost increase of 11.1% in 2027, the largest in over two decades. WTW’s survey on “Best Medical Practices for 2025,” released last September, already indicated that U.S. employers expected a 9.1% increase in healthcare costs for 2026, the highest in over two decades, exceeding 8.1% in 2025 and 7.0% in 2024. The survey interviewed 417 U.S. employers, representing a total of 5 million employees.
With the rising costs, employees’ share of premiums is also increasing. Citing an estimate from the consulting firm Aon, the same report states that the average American with workplace insurance spent $5,297 on healthcare this year, $388 more than the previous year.
Dave Lee, who has worked for over 20 years at a printing company in Chicago, informed Epoch Times reporters that his healthcare insurance costs have increased from $400 per month last year to $600 this year, resulting in $7,200 in annual premiums. Lee, a diabetes patient, lamented: “My salary hasn’t increased much, but healthcare premiums rise every year, as do medication costs. Many of my diabetes medications used to be free, but now I have to pay for them out of pocket.”
Federal data shows that Americans’ out-of-pocket healthcare costs (including deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance) have been increasing in recent years. Michael Chernew, a professor of healthcare policy at Harvard Medical School, stated that healthcare expenditure growth has outpaced income growth in recent years.