Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality

STATISTICAL BRIEF #213 

July 2008 

Highlights 

 23.4 percent of employees in 

establishments offering health 

insurance worked in firms that 

offered at least one plan where 

the employee made no 

contribution to the cost of health 

insurance premiums for single 

coverage. Of the ten most 

populous states, California had 

the highest percentage (37.1 

percent). 

 For small firms in the U.S. that 

offered insurance, almost half 

(49.4 percent) of all employees 

were offered at least one plan 

with no employee contribution 

for single coverage. 

 Of all employees in the U.S. 

who were enrolled in employersponsored health insurance 

with single coverage, the 

percent in plans that required 

no employee contribution was 

23.1 percent. California had the

highest percentage (36.5 

percent) enrolled in no 

employee contribution plans 

with single coverage, while 

Florida (18.0 percent) and Ohio 

(16.7 percent) had the lowest. 

 Employees in small firms were 

much more likely than those in 

large firms to be enrolled in a 

plan that required no 

contribution to the premium. 

Over one-half of employees 

enrolled in a single coverage 

plan in small firms were in plans 

with no required premium 

contribution by employees; the 

same was true for over onethird of those with family

coverage in small firms. 

 In New York over one-half (55.1 

percent) of all employees 

enrolled in a family plan in small 

firms were in plans with no 

required premium contribution 

by employees. 

State Differences in Offer Rates and 

Enrollment in Employer-Sponsored 

Health Insurance Plans That Required 

No Employee Contribution to the 

Premium Cost, 2005 

Amy K. Taylor, PhD and Beth Levin Crimmel, MS 

Introduction 

While many employers have cut back their health insurance benefits 

in response to rising costs, some employers continue to pay 100 

percent of premiums for their employees. In 2005, almost onequarter of employees in establishments with health insurance 

worked in firms that offered at least one plan where the employer

required no employee contribution to the health insurance premium 

for at least one plan with single coverage. 

This Statistical Brief presents estimates of offer rates and enrollment 

in employer-sponsored health insurance plans requiring no 

employee contribution in the ten most populous states in 2005. The 

availability of such plans varies considerably by state and firm size,

among other factors. State variations from the national average are 

discussed. 

The estimates shown in this brief, which are drawn from the 

Insurance Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 

(MEPS-IC), look at both single and family coverage in the private 

sector of the economy. In addition to all firms, estimates for 

employees working for small (less than 50 employees) and large (50 

or more employees) firms are shown. All differences between 

estimates discussed in the text are statistically significant at the 0.05 

level. 

Findings 

Offer rates

Among the 112.2 million private sector employees in the United 

States in 2005, 97.5 million, or 86.9 percent, worked where 

employer-sponsored health insurance was offered (see Statistical 

Brief #178). Of these, 23.4 percent of employees in establishments 

with health insurance worked in firms that offered at least one plan

where the employee made no contribution to health insurance 

premiums for single coverage (figure 1).

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2

Of the 10 most populous states, California had the highest percentage (37.1 percent) of employees who 

worked in firms that offered insurance and that required no employee contribution to single health 

insurance premiums for at least one plan. Employees in New York (28.2 percent) were also offered such 

plans at a higher rate than the national average; the offer rate in Florida (18.8 percent) was below the 

national average. 

Overall, 11.9 percent of employees (in firms that offered insurance) were offered at least one family 

coverage plan that required no employee contribution (figure 2). This percentage was higher than the 

national average in California, Michigan, New Jersey, and New York. It was lower than the national 

average in Florida. 

 

For small firms in the U.S. that offered insurance, almost half (49.4 percent).of all employees were offered 

at least one plan requiring no employee contribution for single coverage. In nine of the 10 most populous 

states, the offer rates of at least one single coverage plan with no employee contribution did not differ 

significantly from the national average. Only in California was the rate different; almost two-thirds of 

employees in small firms with insurance were offered a no employee contribution single plan. 

Slightly over one-quarter of all employees in small firms in the U.S. that offer insurance were offered at 

least one family plan with no employee contribution to the premium. The rate was higher in New York 

(38.3 percent) and lower in Georgia (18.8 percent). 

The percentage of employees in large firms with insurance who were offered at least one no employee 

contribution plan was much lower than for those in small firms, for both single (figure 1) and family (figure 

2) plans. Nationwide, 16.9 percent of employees in large firms with insurance were offered a single 

coverage plan which did not require an employee contribution towards health insurance premiums. The 

rate was similar in most of the 10 most populous states; only in California was the rate significantly 

different, with 29.1 percent of employees in large firms offered such plans. 

In large firms where health insurance was offered, the percentage of all private sector employees in the 

U.S. who were offered at least one no employee contribution plan with family coverage was 8.3 percent. 

Workers in Michigan (14.9 percent) and New York (12.0 percent) were more likely to be offered a family 

plan which required no employee contribution for health insurance premiums. 

Enrollment 

Of all employees in the U.S. who were enrolled in employer-sponsored health insurance with single 

coverage, the percent in plans that required no employee contribution was 23.1 percent (figure 3). 

California had the highest percentage (36.5 percent) enrolled in no employee contribution plans with 

single coverage, while Florida (18.0 percent) and Ohio (16.7 percent) had the lowest. 

Employees in small private sector firms were much more likely than those in large firms to be enrolled in a 

plan that required no contribution to the premium. Over one-half of all employees enrolled in a single 

coverage plan in small firms were in plans with no required premium contribution by employees. California 

(62.5 percent) and New York (61.2 percent) had significantly different rates for single coverage, and both 

were higher than the national average. Over one-third (36.4 percent) of enrolled employees in small firms 

made no contribution to their family premium (figure 4). The rate in New York (55.1 percent) was higher 

than the national average. 

For large employers, 14.4 percent of employees with single coverage were in plans that required no 

employee contribution. California had a higher rate of such employees (26.9 percent), while employees in 

Florida were enrolled at a lower rate (10.0 percent) (figure 3). The percentage enrolled in family plans 

was generally lower. Overall, 9.1 percent of employees in large firms with family coverage (figure 4) were 

enrolled in plans which required no contribution towards premiums by the employee. These rates were 

higher in California (15.5 percent) and Michigan (13.0 percent). 

Data Source 

This Statistical Brief summarizes data from the 2005 MEPS-IC. The data are available on the MEPS Web 

site (www.meps.ahrq.gov) or have been produced using special computation runs on the confidential 

MEPS-IC data available at the U.S. Census Bureau. 
3

 

Definitions 

Employer 

 A particular workplace or physical location where business is conducted or services or industrial 

operations are performed. In this brief, only private sector employers are reported. 

Employee 

A person on the actual payroll. This definition excludes temporary and contract workers but includes the 

owner or manager if that person works at the firm. 

Enrollee 

 An employee that is enrolled in a health insurance plan offered by the employer. Enrollees do not include 

any dependents covered by the plan. 

Firm 

A business entity consisting of one or more business establishments under common ownership or control. 

A firm represents the entire organization, including the company headquarters and all divisions, 

subsidiaries, and branches. A firm may consist of a single-location establishment, in which case the 

establishment and firm are identical. 

Health insurance plan 

An insurance contract that provides hospital and/or physician coverage to an employee for an agreedupon fee (premium) for a defined benefit period. 

Single coverage 

Health insurance that covers the employee only. 

Family coverage 

Health insurance that covers the employee and the employee’s family. Information is collected for a family 

of four when family plans vary by family size. 

About MEPS-IC 

The MEPS-IC is a survey of business establishments and governments that collects information on 

employer-sponsored health insurance, such as whether insurance is offered, enrollments, types of plans, 

and premiums. The survey is conducted annually by the U.S. Census Bureau under the sponsorship of 

the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The yearly response rate has averaged 78 

percent for in-scope sample units. Approximately 4 percent of the original sample has been out-of-scope 

in a typical year. A total sample of 42,000 private sector establishments was selected for the 2006 survey, 

prior to accounting for losses due to nonresponse and out-of-scope cases. 

For more information on this survey, see MEPS Methodology Reports 6, 8, 10, 14, 17 and 18 on the 

MEPS Web site at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/data_stats/publications.jsp and Insurance Component 

Survey Basics at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/survey_comp/Insurance.jsp.

Suggested Citation 

Amy K. Taylor, PhD and Beth Levin Crimmel, MS. State Differences in Offer Rates and Enrollment in 

Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Plans That Required No Employee Contribution to the Premium 

Cost, 2005, Statistical Brief #213. July 2008. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD, 

http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/data_files/publications/st213/stat213.pdf 

* * * 

AHRQ welcomes questions and comments from readers of this publication who are interested in 

obtaining more information about access, cost, use, financing, and quality of health care in the United 

States. We also invite you to tell us how you are using this Statistical Brief and other MEPS data and 
4

tools and to share suggestions on how MEPS products might be enhanced to further meet your needs. 

Please e-mail us at MEPSProjectDirector@ahrq.hhs.gov or send a letter to the address below: 

Steven B. Cohen, PhD, Director 

Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 

540 Gaither Road 

Rockville, MD 20850 
Figure 1: Percentage of employees in establishments with health

insurance that offered a single coverage plan requiring no employee

contribution, by state and firm size, private sector, 2005: 

United States and 10 most populous states

23.4%

49.4%

16.9%

37.1%

64.5%

29.1%

18.8%

44.9%

13.6%

18.2%

54.4%

12.0%

24.1%

45.1%

18.3%

26.7%

55.0%

18.8%

24.1%

49.1%

16.4%

28.2%

55.6%

19.4%

19.6%

40.6%

14.2%

24.9%

50.5%

18.4%

21.0%

49.8%

16.2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

U.S.

Calif.

Florida

Georgia

Illinois

Mich.

N.J.

N.Y.

Ohio

Penn.

Texas

All firms Small firms Large firms

Figure 2: Percentage of employees in establishments with health insurance

that offered a family coverage plan requiring no employee

contribution, by State and firm size, private sector, 2005: 

United States and 10 most populous states

11.9%

26.4%

8.3%

15.4%

28.7%

11.5%

6.8%

22.3%

3.8%

6.9%

18.8%

4.8%

12.4%

30.1%

7.6%

20.1%

38.7%

14.9%

17.1%

34.5%

11.8%

18.4%

38.3%

12.0%

13.2%

24.8%

10.3%

16.4%

31.5%

12.5%

8.2%

23.6%

5.7%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

U.S.

Calif.

Florida

Georgia

Illinois

Mich.

N.J.

N.Y

Ohio

Penn.

Texas

All firms Small firms Large firms

Statistical Brief #213: State Differences in Offer Rates and Enrollment in Employer-Sponsored Health 

Insurance Plans That Required No Employee Contribution to the Premium Cost, 2005 

5
23.1%

51.7%

14.4%

36.5%

62.5%

26.9%

18.0%

46.1%

10.0%

20.3%

54.6%

12.3%

20.6%

50.7%

12.0%

24.0%

51.3%

15.5%

23.5%

54.7%

11.3%

27.1%

61.2%

14.6%

16.7%

37.2%

12.0%

21.6%

50.1%

14.0%

22.2%

52.6%

14.3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

U.S.

Calif.

Florida

Georgia

Illinois

Mich.

N.J.

N.Y.

Ohio

Penn.

Texas

All firms Small firms Large firms

Figure 3: Single coverage: Percentage of enrolled 

employees in a health insurance plan requiring no

employee contribution, by firm size, private sector, 2005: 

United States and 10 most populous states

Figure 4: Family coverage: Percentage of enrolled employees

in a health insurance plan requiring no employee

contribution, by firm size, private sector, 2005: 

United States and 10 most populous states

13.4%

36.4%

9.1%

18.8%

35.7%

15.5%

8.2%

43.7%

4.0%

5.0%

33.4%

1.2%

11.0%

31.2%

18.3%

45.0%

13.0%

15.6%

46.0%

8.1%

18.6%

55.1%

10.0%

16.3%

31.7%

16.9%

37.7%

12.4%

29.2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

U.S.

Calif.

Florida

Georgia

Illinois

Mich.

N.J.

N.Y.

Ohio

Penn.

Texas

All firms Small firms Large firms

Statistical Brief #213: State Differences in Offer Rates and Enrollment in Employer-Sponsored Health 

Insurance Plans That Required No Employee Contribution to the Premium Cost, 2005 

6