Skip to main content
Data analyzed by

State Health Compare

Percent of annual premiums contributed by employees

Measure Overview

Health insurance plans typically charge a monthly fee called a “premium.” In the case of employer-sponsored insurance (ESI), the cost of a health plan premium is split between the employer and the employee. The share of ESI premiums paid by employees across single and family insurance policies has increased over the past decade. As a result, employee contributions to ESI premiums represent a growing share of workers’ incomes. Tracking employee contributions to ESI premiums is a key step in understanding and comparing the cost of ESI plans and addressing financial barriers to coverage, even for those who seem to have ready access to or the option of enrolling in a health insurance plan.

State Health Compare provides annual state-level measures of employee contributions to premiums for single plans and family plans. These measures reflect data collected in the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey – Insurance Component (MEPS-IC).

Generate customized graphics using this data by selecting one of the options below.

Related Products

Rising Health Insurance Costs: Family Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI) Premiums Grow at Over Twice the Rate Seen Last Year

SHADAC has tracked trends in ESI health insurance costs for years using the latest Medical Expenditure Panel Survey–Insurance Component (MEPS-IC) data. We are continuing our coverage with this analysis of recently released 2025 MEPS data, finding that ESI family plan premiums grew at over twice the rate seen last year—read full blog for details and findings.



Brief cover page

ISSUE BRIEF—The Struggle to Afford Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance (ESI) in 2024: A 50-State Review

In the latest brief from a long-running series, SHADAC researchers use estimates from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey-Insurance Component (MEPS-IC), produced by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), to look at national and state-level ESI access, enrollment, and cost data in 2024 as compared to the prior year.