Leede conducting Wisconsin employers health benefit survey

For the Herald Times Reporter

MANITOWOC — Wisconsin employers continue to shift more of the costs of health premiums and care to their employees.

This is one of the preliminary findings of a Wisconsin Health Benefits Study being completed by Leede Research.

The study is a follow-up to one conducted by the Manitowoc firm in 2003 and it shows continued movement by employers to control or reduce their health-care costs.

This is being achieved by both changes in plan designs and through movement to high deductible or consumer driven health plans.

Leede's survey of 400 employers across all 72 counties in Wisconsin will review what employers are doing to address increasing healthcare costs that have been increasing an average of 9.3 percent annually in the past five years.

The study looks at employers with 25 or more employees who offer health benefits to their employees. It also will track employers who have dropped health coverage as a benefit.

Leede CEO Dean Halverson said the survey is showing little support for the current government plan for reform. The results indicate respondents do not believe current activities will reduce costs and do not see components of any of the plans presented to date that offer hope of savings.

They also do not view the government strongly as a partner in controlling health-care costs in their organizations.

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