Studay: Health insurance cost for families outpaces income

PRINCETON, N.J.—A new study finds that the cost of health insurance for families has far outpaced incomes in recent years.

The study, released Tuesday by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, analyzed government data from 2001 to 2005. It found that family health insurance premiums in Maine increased 27 percent during that time, three times faster than policyholders' income.

The study also found that the number of Mainers in private-sector jobs that offered health insurance declined by 5,300 at the close of the four-year period.

Maine managed to buck the national trend toward fewer private businesses offering coverage. The study found that the number of private-sector employers in the state offering health insurance benefits rose by about 300 from 2001 to 2005.