Some quotes, survey statistics and musings to use in employee
communications, or just as a break in the grind.
According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s (EBRI) 2011 Health Confidence survey, 57%
of individuals with employment-based coverage are extremely or very confident their employer
or union would continue to offer health coverage following the enactment of the federal health
reform law. However, American workers are not confident that they could afford to purchase
coverage on their own, even if they were given the money to do so by plan sponsors. In 2011, 20%
were extremely or very confident they could afford to purchase coverage, 30% were somewhat
confident and 48% were not too or not at all confident.
“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just
that I stay with problems longer.”
—Albert Einstein
The Hartford and MIT AgeLab found 80% of pre-retirees said they would prefer
to live as long as they’re healthy, while only 3% said they want to live as long
as they have money. Similar percentages were true for the retiree segment of
the survey. The survey found an overarching optimism among both these age
groups, despite economic uncertainty.

More than one in five Americans were in families with problems paying medical bills in 2010. This is about the same proportion as in 2007, according to a national study released by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). While problems paying medical bills stabilized in recent years, the proportion of Americans in families with medical bill problems remained significantly higher in 2010 compared with 2003— 20.9% versus 15.1%.