(Aug 20): US employer healthcare costs are expected to rise 9.5% in 2027, pushing the average cost above US$19,000 (RM76,836) per employee, ​driven by increased medical use and spending on high-priced ‌drugs, insurance broker Aon said on Thursday.

Medical spending has climbed as patients use more healthcare services, chronic conditions become more prevalent and ​the number of high-cost claims increases, Aon said. Healthcare ​costs for employers are set to rise by near ⁠double digits for a fourth straight year in 2027.

Greater use of specialty medicines and GLP-1 ​treatments for diabetes, obesity and other conditions is adding to prescription-drug costs.

"Additional cost pressure is emerging as providers adopt technologies, including AI, that support ​more detailed clinical documentation and coding, contributing to higher ​billed charges in some instances," said Aon.

Employers are expected to cover about ‌82% ⁠of health-plan costs in 2026.

Their average cost is expected to rise 8.8% this year to US$14,432 per employee, while total plan costs increase 8.3% to US$17,562.

Employees are expected to spend an average ​of US$5,297 in 2026, ​comprising US$3,130 in ⁠payroll contributions and US$2,167 in out-of-pocket expenses, a combined increase of 7.9% from last year.

Aon based its ​estimates on data from more than 1,100 ​US employers ⁠covering 7.9 million employees and US$135 billion in 2026 healthcare spending.

The projection assumes employers do not make benefit changes or introduce ⁠care-management programmes ​to curb expenses."

Aon consultants expect many ​employers to implement cost-saving changes or programmes to help mitigate this increase," it ​said.

Uploaded by Siow Chen Ming