Tuesday, July 15, 2014ST. PAUL, Minn. -- If you could buy health insurance coverage comparable to what comes with your job, would you quit? About 40% of Americans who have health insurance as an employee benefit would do just that, a new survey has found.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that, because of the Affordable Care Act, workers may “choose to supply less labor” equivalent to two million full-time jobs between 2017 and 2024. This prompts the question: How many workers see themselves as “job-locked” – that is, reluctant to change jobs for fear of losing health insurance?
Forty percewnt of workers surveyed by Securian Financial Group (94% who work full-time, 6% part-time) appear to be experiencing job lock. They would seek other employment if if they could buy health insurance on the open market comparable to the out-of-pocket cost and coverage they have through their employers.
A large majority of all respondents, 91%, say they like the work they do in their jobs and 83% describe themselves as satisfied or somewhat satisfied with their health insurance. Even so, many dream about doing something else. “More than half, 56%, say they have considered leaving their jobs to do something more personal or meaningful but didn’t because they need the health insurance they currently purchase in the work place,” said Michelle Hall, manager, market research, Securian Financial Group, in a prepared statement. “Of that group, 43% say they would start their own businesses.”
Another 16% who have considered quitting say they would work in a field they prefer where jobs typically provide little no health insurance, she added.
Some 43% say they’ve turned down job offers because the health insurance benefits didn’t meet their needs and 46% of married respondents refused job offers because of less health insurance coverage. This compares to 34% of the single people. The most-cited reasons were high cost and inadequate coverage.
Other report findings:
SOURCE: Securian Financial Group.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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