Hannah Grabenstein's PBS News article reports that employer-based family health plans averaged $28,303 in 2026, up 5% from 2025, and experts like Zack Cooper, Meredith Rosenthal, and Matthew Rae attribute rising premiums mainly to provider prices, more use of care, and costly new drugs like GLP-1s, with hospital consolidation also playing a part. Analysts predict annual premiums will jump as much as 9.5% in 2027, with workers shouldering more of the costs.