Obamacare premiums set to jump another 14 percent
Healthier clients dropping Obamacare, leading to more rate hikes as remaining clients are sicker.
Middle-income Americans who buy their health coverage on the Affordable Care Act marketplaces face a second straight year of double-digit premium hikes. Insurers have proposed a median 14 percent premium increase for 2027, the second-highest jump since 2018, according to a Wednesday analysis by health policy nonprofit KFF cited by The Associated Press.
KFF analyzed filings from 77 insurers across 16 states and Washington, D.C.
The immediate driver is a sicker risk pool as healthier enrollees drop coverage. Insurers expect that mix shift alone to push premiums up 4 percent next year, Reuters reported. The rest reflects rising medical costs and expiring pandemic-era subsidies. Without those enhanced tax credits, premiums already rose 58 percent in 2026 and deductibles climbed roughly $1,000 per person, per the Reuters account. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is seeking a 15 percent increase for 2027 on top of a 28 percent hike this year, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The pattern is geographically uneven. Average proposed rates in New York, Rhode Island and Washington are up more than 20 percent, Bloomberg reported. Between 2025 and 2027, premiums are on track to increase by more than 33 percent, Reuters said.
Insurers must submit final proposals to regulators by July 15; state regulators will approve or revise rates before open enrollment begins Nov. 1. Millions have already dropped coverage over the past year, and NBC News said advocacy groups warn another round of hikes will accelerate that trend, feeding a cycle of higher rates for those who stay.
