HEALTHCARE AFFORDABILITY CRITICAL ISSUE FOR CONNECTICUT FAMILIES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Hartford, CT) - More than one in ten (13%) Connecticut working-age households couldn't afford their healthcare costs in 2022 according to a recent update of the Connecticut Health Affordability Index (CHAI). The University of Washington School of Social Work, Center for Women's Welfare first developed CHAI in 2019 on behalf of Connecticut's Office of Health Strategy, Office of the State Comptroller and the Connecticut Health Foundation. The index helps consumers, policymakers and state officials assess the impact of healthcare costs on families.

The CHAI, available online at HealthscoreCT, has been updated to reflect 2022 data. Healthcare costs, including insurance premiums, co-pays, deductibles and other expenses, are considered unaffordable if they exceed 7% to 11% of a household's income, depending on household size. A family with two adults and two children is expected to spend no more than 9.1% of their income on healthcare.

"The percentage of working-age households facing unaffordable healthcare costs decreased between 2019 and 2022," said Lisa Manzer, Director, Center for Women's Welfare, University of Washington School of Social Work. "We know, however, that this change can be largely attributed to decreased costs in the most common individual marketplace plans between 2019 and 2022 and expansion of the premium tax credit under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) in 2021. Plan costs rose in 2023 and 2024, and the premium tax credit expires in 2025. Healthcare was still unaffordable for one in five of these families in 2022 and they face greater challenges ahead."

Households with employer-sponsored health plans experienced very different healthcare cost changes between 2019 and 2022: average premiums for employer-sponsored family coverage increased by over 12%. While the percentage of these households unable to afford healthcare costs remained relatively stable from 2019 (16%) to 2022 (15%) - these same families experienced greater challenges in meeting their basic needs. The percentage of households with employer-sponsored health plans who could not afford basic needs including housing, food and childcare grew from 10% to 14%.

"Our state's success relies on everyone being able to live their healthiest lives, and that includes being able to afford to get health care when they need it. Unfortunately, too many families still face unaffordable health care costs," said Tiffany Donelson, president and CEO of the Connecticut Health Foundation. "The good news is that, as this tool clearly shows, policy changes can affect families' ability to afford health care. The federal tax credits for those buying coverage through the individual market made a significant difference, and it will be critical to ensure that these families don't face higher costs when the tax credits expire next year."

"We know from surveys that most CT adults are worried about their ability to pay for healthcare in the future, and almost half are avoiding needed care due to costs.," said Deidre S. Gifford, MD, MPH, Commissioner of the Office of Health Strategy. "Slowing cost growth is essential to ensuring access to quality health care is affordable for Connecticut residents. Programs like Covered CTare helping, but we need everyone including providers, payers, pharmaceutical companies, policy makers and patients at the table to change our cost growth trajectory."

"We take great pride in the exceptional quality of life that Connecticut offers," said State Comptroller Sean Scanlon. "But we cannot truly fulfill our state's potential if we allow anyone to be left behind, especially when it comes to accessing healthcare and essential services. The CHAI Interactive Tool provides us with critical insights into what Connecticut residents need to earn in order to afford healthcare. It is an invaluable resource that will help shape our policy decisions, ensuring we create a state that works for everyone."

The CHAI Summary Report and Interactive Tool are available on-line at HealthscoreCT.

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