Health insurance premiums rose 3% for American businesses last year, as employers kept their contribution flat while increasing by 14% the amount of money workers were expected to pay, according to the annual survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research & Education Trust, an affiliate of the American Hospital Association. Twenty-seven percent of all workers now have annual deductibles of at least $1,000, and the share jumps to 46% at firms with 3 to 199 workers. Since 2005, workers' contributions to premiums have gone up 47% while overall premiums rose 27%, wages increased 18%, and inflation rose 12%.
