Rising Health Care Costs Threaten Employees’ Financial Security: Merrill

(Related: 5 Shocking Facts About Retirement Health Care Costs)

The survey also found that the impact of rising health care costs on savings, investments and debt servicing contributed to employees’ financial stress, which, in turn, negatively affected the health of six in 10 respondents.

The supplement recommends that employers consider enhancing financial education for their employees so that employees understand health care options, the financial implications of their choices and how to manage health care costs. It recommends that employers consider expanding their benefits package to offer more health care management tools, such as Health Savings Accounts, which use pretax dollars to cover health care expenses and allow for tax-free withdrawals in retirement so long as withdrawals are used for medical expenses.

The report also suggests that employers consider providing employees access to a financial professional, financial education that’s tailored to their age or the issues they’re facing and expert-delivered training to help them address a funn range of financial needs, from retirement planning to savings and debt management. 

It makes no mention of whether employers should reduce health care premiums or deductibles in their plans for employees or expand additional coverage beyond including an HSA.

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