2026 survey puts total premiums for employer-sponsored family coverage at $28,303, with workers’ contributions up 9%

KFF’s annual employer survey puts 2026 family premiums at $28,303, up 5% from 2025, Axios reports. Workers’ average contribution reached $7,471, up 9%, but their average share of the premium was 27%, about the same as in 1999. Axios says employers are trying clinics and direct health-system contracts to manage spending; it gives no savings figure for those approaches.