Up, up, and away: Are double-digit health insurance rate increases ahead?

It  looks like another round of health insurance premium increases for millions of Floridians who get their insurance through the federal health care makretplaces.

Twelve Affordable Care Act participating insurers submitted for rate increases in the coming year, data published by KFF show.

AmeriHealth Caritas Florida filed for the largest increase, 39.14%. By contrast, Centene Venture Co. Florida filed for the smallest increase, at 3.87%.

The rates, filed in the spring, haven’t yet been finalized. They are proposed changes. The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation will review and approve final rates for the plans.

With 12 carriers filing rates with the OIR for policy year 2027, Florida residents relying on the healthcare marketplace for their coverage will have fewer choices than they did this year.

A  comparison of OIR-posted information against the KFF data indicates that Ambetter Health of Florida Inc., Cigna Healthcare of Florida, Community Care Network, Molina Healthcare, and Sunshine State Health Plan Inc. will no longer offer plans in the Florida market.

However, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida, which didn’t participate in the healthcare marketplace this year, return for 2027.

Florida has led the nation in the number of people enrolling in “Obamacare” plans since they became available through the federal healthcare exchange.

The Sunshine State also lead the nation in the number of people who fell off Obamacare plans last year after enhanced premium tax credits that helped lower the costs of the polices expired. The subsidies were at the center of partisan impasse last year that led to a government shutdown.

An AP analysis of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data shows that 442,785 Florida residents who had health insurance coverage through an Obamacare plan in 2025 were uninsured in 2026.

While Florida saw the largest drop in terms of number of people, percentage-wise there was a 10.3% reduction in enrollment.

Ohio saw the largest dip in Obamacare enrollment between 2025 and 2026 at 32.4%.

Democratic senatorial candidate state Rep. Angie Nixon, has been criticizing her opponent, Republican Sen. Ashley Moody, and Sen. Rick Scott while on the stump this week for their healthcare policies, including allowing the enhanced premium tax credits expire.

There are 276 insurers in 50 states and the District of Columbia participating in the healthcare marketplaces for policy year 2027, according to the KFF analysis.

KFF reports that the companies submitted premium changes for the 2027 policy year ranging from -1% to 54%.

Most of the carriers (63%) proposed changes of between 10% and 25%.

The KFF analysis measurers a premium increase as the enrollment-weighted average rate change across all of the policies within a state (bronze, silver, gold, and platinum plans).

Open enrollment for policy year 2027 coverage begins Nov. 1  and ends Dec. 15 for coverage effective Jan. 1, 2027.