Rising Health Care Costs Create Barrier to American Dream, Experts Say

Skyrocketing insurance premiums restrain wage growth for many workers

People wait at the Clay-Battelle Community Health Center's pharmacy March 21, 2017 in Blacksville, West Virginia. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives votes Thursday on a key plank of Trump's legislative agenda -- his plan to repeal and replace Obamacare, his predecessor's crowning domestic policy achievement. Credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

WASHINGTON—Rising health care costs have caused wage stagnation for decades, diminishing the prosperity of American workers, according to a new study.

A report issued by Willis Towers Watson and the Council for Affordable Health Coverage analyzes changes in hourly compensation for full-time workers between 1980 and 2015 and shows that the escalation of health care premiums has absorbed most of the pay growth, particularly for lower-income earners.