Obamacare Benchmark Premiums Jump 13% to $704 a Month as 2027 Enrollment Opens
The average benchmark Obamacare plan will cost $704 a month for a 40-year-old before subsidies in 2027, according to KFF data, as marketplace premiums climb by double digits for a second straight year.
Finalized benchmark silver premiums are rising 13% on average after a 26% jump from 2025 to 2026, the health policy research group found in an analysis released as open enrollment began Nov. 1. Insurers had proposed a median increase of 15%.
Benchmark silver premiums have now climbed 42% on average between 2025 and 2027. In states that use HealthCare.gov, the 2027 increase is 11%, while states running their own exchanges are seeing 16%.
Insurers point to an unusually steep rise in the underlying cost of care, a trend that has also hit some employer plans. They also cite the expiration of the enhanced premium tax credits at the end of 2025.
Insurer filings estimated that healthier customers leaving after those credits lapsed added about 4 percentage points to premiums in 2026, with a similar additional effect expected in 2027.
Most enrollees receive subsidies that rise along with benchmark premiums. People earning more than 400% of the federal poverty level no longer qualify for premium tax credits, however, and must pay the full price.
Fewer Enrollees, Fewer Insurers
Effectuated marketplace enrollment fell 12%, or 2.6 million people, to 19.2 million by February 2026, KFF said. The Congressional Budget Office projects enrollment will drop from a 2025 peak of 22.4 million to 13.1 million in 2027.
As of Oct. 29, 11 carriers had announced plans to exit at least one state for 2027, while seven planned to enter a new state, according to KFF.
Cigna is leaving the individual market in all 11 states where it sells ACA plans, a move affecting more than 350,000 people, ABC News reported.
Fraud enforcement is also reshaping the rolls. In September, the Department of Health and Human Services canceled coverage for about 760,000 people that federal officials called “phantom” enrollees, possibly signed up by brokers without their knowledge, KFF noted.
KFF added that some enrollees have reportedly had coverage reinstated, suggesting the screening may have flagged some legitimate customers.
Under the 2025 budget reconciliation law, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, refugees, asylees and some other lawfully present immigrants can still buy marketplace coverage but lose eligibility for premium tax credits in 2027.
The maximum out-of-pocket limit rises to $12,000 for an individual and $24,000 for a family next year, up from $10,600 and $21,200, Medical Daily reported.
The Trump administration is emphasizing affordable options. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said HealthCare.gov shoppers will have “robust access to low-cost plans” and that the administration “continues to fight to lower insurance premiums.”
Open enrollment runs through Jan. 15, 2027, in states that use HealthCare.gov. Shoppers must pick a plan by Dec. 15 for coverage that starts Jan. 1; plans chosen later generally begin Feb. 1.
State-run exchanges set their own calendars. Idaho’s window closes Dec. 15, while California, New York, Rhode Island and the District of Columbia allow sign-ups through Jan. 31, according to ABC News.
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