Employer Health-Care Costs Expected to Rise 6% in 2020

Employers’ health-care costs are starting to climb faster. In 2020, the cost of covering their employees is expected to rise 6%, considerably higher than general inflation levels of less than 2%.

That is the projection released June 20 by management consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. Its annual report on employer health-care costs is based on a survey of about 550 employers with at least 200 employees and actuaries with health plans covering about 95 million Americans in employer-sponsored plans.

Chief drivers of health-care cost inflation are expected to be escalating drug prices, the high level of chronic diseases among Americans, and ...