Health insurance getting scarce?

The percentage of California employers offering health insurance to workers has declined significantly over the last decade, according to a recent survey.

Conducted by the California HealthCare Foundation, the survey found that 71 percent of California’s employers offered their workers health insurance in 2002; that figure declined to 60 percent in 2012, according to The Sacramento Bee. In the same period, the cost of health insurance increased by roughly 170 percent—more than five times the 31.5 percent increase in the state’s overall inflation rate. California’s average premium for single-person health coverage was $545 a month in 2012, compared to a national average of $468.

The survey also found that large employers with large numbers of full-time employees were most likely to offer health insurance, while deductibles were more likely to be much higher for those working for small businesses.