The price of state mandated benefits

States have passed more than 700 statutes mandating that insurers cover specific providers, diseases, or people who otherwise might have difficulty obtaining coverage. We report findings from three econometric studies that examine the effects of mandates on the cost of insurance, the small employer's decision to offer health insurance, and the large employer's decision to self-insure. Study results indicate that mandates raise the price of health insurance substantially, that nearly one of every six small firms that do not offer health insurance would in an essentially mandate-free environment, and that about half of the large firms that are converting to self-insurance would not if there were no mandates.