Issue Briefs

Social Security was the largest source of income for those currently age 65 and older, accounting for nearly 40 percent of their income on average, in 2008, according to a study released today by EBRI. However, the importance of Social Security varied widely, with the lowest income group very heavily dependent on the federal retirement program compared with those who have high incomes. Press release EBRI Notes Jun 3, 2010 16 pages

Assets in health savings accounts (HSAs) and health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs), two relatively new employment-based health benefit plan options , have grown in recent years and totaled $7.1 billion in 2009, up from $835.4 million three years earlier, according to a study by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). In addition, the number of accounts in these plans, collectively known as consumer-driven health plans (CDHPs), also was up during the same period—totaling 5 million in 2009, up from 1.2 million in 2006. EBRI Issue Brief Jun 1, 2010 32 pages

Assets in individual account retirement plan assets are concentrated in families with a set of common characteristics—higher net worth, higher family income, higher educational attainment, with older family heads, and with white, non-Hispanic heads, according to a study released by EBRI. Press release EBRI Notes May 6, 2010 20 pages

Not surprisingly, the percentage of the nonelderly (under age 65) without employment-based health insurance coverage has grown during the recession, according to a study published today by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). But in addition, for those who still have employment-based health insurance, deductibles and co-payments for office visits also have increased. EBRI Issue Brief May 4, 2010 24 pages

New research from the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) finds that auto-enrollment of participants in 401(k) plans is likely to be most beneficial to young and low-income workers, although high-income workers are likely to benefit from it as well. It also confirms earlier results that large employers adopting auto-enrollment have significantly increased the employer “match” to their workers’ own 401(k) contributions. EBRI Issue Brief Apr 1, 2010 24 pages

Health savings accounts (HSAs) are likely to play a minor part in savings for health care costs in retirement, according to a report issued by EBRI. That’s because both statutory contribution limits and currently low interest rates constrain the amount HSAs are able to generate, compared with the large amount needed to pay for retiree health expenses. Press release EBRI Notes Apr 1, 2010 12 pages

Reflecting the changing economic landscape, more older workers are staying in the work force, but increasingly in part-time rather than full-time jobs, according to new research released by EBRI. Press release. EBRI Notes Mar 16, 2010 16 pages

Americans’ confidence in their ability to retire appears to be stabilizing, now that the economic volatility of the recession has abated, but their self-described preparations for retirement continue to erode, according to the 2010 Retirement Confidence Survey (RCS) released by EBRI and Mathew Greenwald and Associates. However, the RCS also finds that a growing number of American workers are also planning to delay retirement—which has negative implications for the U.S. job market, where unemployment is high and layoffs continue to grow. As older workers stay at their jobs longer, the RCS results suggest that fewer existing jobs are likely to open up. EBRI Issue Brief Mar 9, 2010 44 pages

The labor-force participation rate is increasing for older Americans (those age 55 and older) as older workers are faced with higher health costs and economic losses, according to a new study published by EBRI. Press release EBRI Notes Feb 18, 2010 20 pages

Since the vast majority of Americans who have health coverage get it through their jobs, one obvious question raised by the health reform legislation pending in Congress is: How might it affect the U.S. employment-based health benefits system? At a recent day-long conference sponsored by EBRI, more than a dozen experts from a wide range of specialties found consensus on one point: Imposing a tax on health benefits (such as the proposed tax on so-called “Cadillac” health plans) is likely to cause major cuts in health benefits and might result in structural changes in the employment-based benefits system. EBRI Issue Brief Feb 16, 2010 24 pages