Every year, I spend months painstakingly tracking every insurance carrier rate filing (nearly 400 for 2025!) for the following year to determine just how much average insurance policy premiums on the individual market are projected to increase or decrease.
Carriers tendency to jump in and out of the market, repeatedly revise their requests, and the confusing blizzard of actual filing forms sometimes make it next to impossible to find the specific data I need.
I really only need three pieces of information for each carrier:
Overall preliminary rate changes via SERFF database, state insurance dept. website and/or the federal Rate Review database.
Ambetter Health of LA:
The proposed rate change of 16.4% applies to approximately 97,401 individuals. Ambetter Health of Louisiana’s projected administrative expenses for 2026 are $91.51 PMPM. Administrative expense does not include $17.45 for taxes and fees. The historical administrative expenses for 2025 were $79.64 PMPM, which excludes taxes and fees. The projected loss ratio is 81.4% which satisfies the federal minimum loss ratio requirement of 80.0%.
CHRISTUS Health Plan:
(as far as I can tell, CHRISTUS is dropping out of the Louisiana individual market...they aren't listed on the federal Rate Review database website, nor do they show up in the LA SERFF filings or on the LA Insurance Dept. website.)
Overall preliminary rate changes via SERFF database, state insurance dept. website and/or the federal Rate Review database.
Anthem Health Plans of KY:
This filing includes an average rate change of 24.0%, excluding the impact of aging, effective January 1, 2026. At the individual plan level, rate increases range from 11.1% to 28.9% for renewing plans. A subscriber’s actual rate could be higher or lower depending on the geographic location, age characteristics, dependent coverage, and other factors.
Unfortunately, Anthem doesn't provide their actual 2025 individual market enrollment; I've had to estimate this based on marketwide estimated enrollment; see below.
Overall preliminary rate changes via SERFF database, state insurance dept. website and/or the federal Rate Review database.
Aetna Life Insurance Co:
(Aetna/CVS is dropping out of the individual market in all states; I estimate they have around 35,000 enrollees in Kansas who will have to find a different carrier for 2026)
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas City:
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (BCBSKC) is requesting an average rate change of -6.1% for 2025 individual rates as compared to 2023 individual rates and calculated by the URRT. The changes vary by plan, with a minimum rate change of -10.8% and a maximum rate increase of 1.8%.
Table 2.1 summarizes proposed rate increases effective January 1, 2026, and displays significant factors driving the proposed rate increases. Note that this rate buildup is illustrative of changes occurring from 2025 to 2026, and is therefore not reflective of factors displayed in Worksheet 1, Section II of the URRT, which pertains to changes from the experience period (2024) to the projection period (2026). Factors found in The URRT are discussed in later sections.
Overall preliminary rate changes via SERFF database, state insurance dept. website and/or the federal Rate Review database.
Hawaii Medical Service Association:
Our requested rates include only the amounts needed to cover the expected health care benefits of our members, the cost of administering their benefits, expected Affordable Care Act (ACA) fees, and a small charge to help manage the risk of offering benefits to this population.
We based our rate increase request on a review of past costs of benefits and other expenses. These historical costs are adjusted for trend, to account for expected changes in use of medical services, cost inflation, and other factors that affect the cost of care. We also adjusted costs for benefit changes, which were largely made to comply with government mandated plan designs. Administrative expenses have been relatively flat over the past couple of years.
(Unfortunately, no rate justification summary is available, and the full actuarial memo is heavily redacted. Policy enrollees are estimated based on marketwide estimated enrollment; see below.)
Banner/Aetna CVS:
(Dropping out of the individual market for 2026.)
Blue Cross Blue Shield of AZ:
BCBSAZ is filing an average rate increase for plans in the Arizona Individual market of 29.88%, varying between 14.7% and 38.6%, excluding federally prescribed age factors. The average increase is calculated from the most recently implemented rates which were effective January 1, 2025. This increase will be effective on January 1, 2026 and will affect 71,871 Arizona policyholders (as of March 2025).
JULY 31st, 2025 - Nevadans Get a Preview of 2026 Proposed Health Insurance Rate Changes for Upcoming Open Enrollment
[CARSON CITY, NV] - Starting August 1st, Nevada consumers who shop for their health insurance on the individual health insurance market can view and provide comments on proposed rate changes for Plan Year 2026.
The Nevada Division of Insurance (Division) has received and made public on its website the 2026 proposed rate changes from health insurers intending to sell plans on and off the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange (the "Exchange"). The Exchange is the state agency that assists eligible Nevada residents to purchase affordable health and dental plans.
Initial Affordable Care Act Rates for 2026 have been posted
The North Carolina Department of Insurance has posted the rate changes requested by insurers for the 2026 plan year individual and small-group market plans offered under the Affordable Care Act.
Posting of the requested rates is part of the rate review process required by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Unlike some types of insurance, the NCDOI does not set rates for health insurance.
The projected average rate change for plans effective January 1, 2026 is 16.0% which is an average rate change of about $87 per member per month (pmpm). Because 16.0% (or about $87) is an average, it is possible to have a different rate change. Factors affecting a member's premium are age, tobacco use, family composition, plan, and geographic area. Expected cost differences by product are updated every year to ensure premium differences are appropriate. BridgeSpan has approximately 200 members enrolled in this line of business as of March 2025.
...The rate change described above is driven by the following factors:
Medical Trend : 9.1%
Change in Benefits, Age, Area, and Network : -1.5%
Change in Market Morbidity : 5.0%
Exchange User Fees : 1.0%
Other : 2.0%
Other includes: actual results vs. expected, changes to admin expenses, and rx rebates. Actual results vs. expected reflect differences between actual results and past assumptions, including a true-up of market morbidity estimates
Pennsylvanians can submit comments on rate requests and filings through September 2
Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Insurance Department (PID) today announced that the 2026 rate changes requested by insurance companies currently operating in Pennsylvania’s individual and small group markets are now available. On average, all Pennsylvania health insurers are requesting premium increases in plan year 2026: 19% increase to premiums in the individual market (for people who buy their own insurance), and a 13% increase to premiums in the small group market (for small businesses).
