Marsh surveyed more than 1,800 employers and projects U.S. employer-sponsored
health-insurance costs will rise 8.2% in 2027 versus this year, the largest
annual increase since 2003. About 1 percentage point of the increase is tied to
wider use of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs by employers that cover them; Marsh says
these drugs are costly for plans. Roughly 1 ppt reflects providers using AI to
surface additional billable items, and a further 1 ppt stems from a federal
dispute-resolution mechanism put in place by law and effective in 2022. Marsh
adds employers say that without any plan changes costs would instead rise about
11% next year.
