September 29, 1998 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)
Fewer medium and large private
employers provide dental care for employees
In 1995, 57 percent of full-time employees in medium and
large private establishments received dental care benefits from their employers. That
participation rate was down from a high of 77 percent in 1984, and similar to the
56-percent rate reported in 1980.
[Chart data—TXT]
One factor that could be influencing the reduced employee participation in
employer-provided dental care benefits is the rising percentage of employees asked to
contribute to the cost of the dental care. In 1988, only 34 percent of participating
employees were required to share a portion of the cost of dental care with their
employers; by 1993, 54 percent of participating employees had cost-sharing arrangements.
Of those employees receiving dental care benefits, 85 percent are covered by a
fee-for-service type plan. Only 8 percent of employees are covered by a dental health
maintenance organization (HMO) and 6 percent are covered by a dental health preferred
provider organization (PPO).
These data are a product of the BLS Employee Benefits
Survey. For additional information, see "Dental Care Benefits, 1995"
(PDF 282K), Compensation and Working
Conditions, Summer 1998.
Of interest
Spotlight on Statistics: National Hispanic Heritage Month
In this Spotlight, we take a look at the Hispanic labor force—including labor force participation, employment and unemployment, educational attainment, geographic location, country of birth, earnings, consumer expenditures, time use, workplace injuries, and employment projections.
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