Critical illness insurance is on the rise, and employers are helping to drive the growth of the increasingly popular product by offering it as a voluntary benefit.

A recent study by Mercer, a benefits consulting firm, finds that 45 percent of employers with more than 500 employees are offering critical illness insurance, up from 34 percent in 2009.

"What we have seen is a very clear and steady rise in the number of employers offering high-deductible plans," Barry Schilmeister, a principal in the health and benefits practice at Mercer, told Kaiser Health News. "More employers are looking at the reality of pulling back on the value of health plans but looking to offer something else that would make people feel a little more comfortable about taking on that additional risk."

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