Second-Highest Increase in Obamacare Premiums in Nearly a Decade

Companies offering Obamacare health insurance plans next year are requesting payment rates representing a 14% median increase ‌to premiums over 2026 rates, according to data from health policy research ‌group KFF.

Reasons Behind the Increase - Wider economic inflation, rising costs of medications and increased consolidation of medical providers are also driving the increase in ​premiums, ​KFF said.

■Insurers expect the pool of patients with greater medical needs to increase premiums by 4% ⁠next year as healthy members continue to drop coverage in 2027.

■Obamacare enrollment declined 13% in 2026, from ​22.1 million people in 2025, ‌after the expiration of extra subsidies meant to help people keep coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Affected Companies - Centene and UnitedHealth have flagged elevated medical costs in their Obamacare businesses this ​year.

■CVS Health announced ‌last year that its Aetna insurance unit would not offer Obamacare plans ​in 2026 due to increased costs anticipated in that business.

The markets may be affected by this situation, potentially leading to higher premium payments. However, the impact of this increase on the health insurance sector remains uncertain.