Your boss may be dropping your health coverage next year

If you get health insurance through a small or mid-sized employer in Georgia, your coverage may not be there in 2027.

What’s happening: A new national survey by eHealth found that about three in four small and mid-sized businesses that currently offer health coverage are thinking about dropping it for next year. In Georgia, insurance companies have proposed raising premiums for individual plans by an average of 20.7% in 2027.

By the numbers: The survey found:

• 54% of businesses offering coverage are already facing double-digit premium increases.
• 85% say they are worried they will not be able to afford coverage within three years.
• 79% say managing a group health plan has become too much of a burden.

What’s new: More employers are looking at an alternative to traditional group plans called a CHOICE Arrangement, which lets employers give workers a set amount of money to buy their own individual health coverage instead of enrolling in a company plan. Employer familiarity with CHOICE Arrangements rose from 46% to 57% over the past year, according to the survey.

What this means for you: If your employer drops group coverage, you would need to find and pay for your own health insurance, likely through Georgia’s individual market, where premiums are already proposed to rise by more than 20% next year.