Healthcare Premiums Set to Soar Again with 15% Median Increase

Healthcare premiums in the US are set to rise again, with insurers proposing double-digit increases for next year. The median proposed increase is 15%, making this the second consecutive year of double-digit increases.

This comes on top of a massive jump last year, where initial requests for a median 18% increase became a final median increase of 20%. If the proposed increases hold, typical Marketplace premiums will have increased by more than one-third in just two years.

For families already struggling to afford healthcare, these increases can be the difference between having health insurance and going without it. In fact, ACA enrollment decreased by 12% from 2025 to 2026, with approximately 2 million more people dropping out of coverage in the first months of last year.

Insurers have pointed to a sicker Marketplace population as one reason for the premium increases, but this raises questions about the fundamental business model of private health insurance companies. When the people an insurer covers become more expensive, it doesn't simply accept lower profits indefinitely; it looks for ways to bring its finances back into balance, including raising premiums or negotiating lower payments to providers.

Some proposed increases are particularly striking, with 51 insurers requesting hikes of over 25%. UnitedHealthcare's subsidiaries in Georgia, New York, and South Carolina are proposing increases of 54%, 52.1%, and 45.5% respectively.