Minnesota Health Insurance Premiums Set To Jump Next Year

ST. PAUL (WJON News) -- Minnesotans who buy health insurance on the individual market will see a sharp increase in premiums next year.

The Minnesota Department of Commerce announced Wednesday that rates for 2026 will rise an average of 21.5% for individual plans and 14.2% for small group plans.

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MNsure Chief Executive Officer Libby Caulum says the enhanced premium tax credits have a demonstrated track record of success: increased affordability, coverage gains, and driving down Minnesota’s uninsured rate to a new record low.

“We hope that Congress will take swift action to make the enhanced tax credits permanent, because every Minnesotan who has been able to stay covered with this financial help is another Minnesotan able to access the health care they need,”

Officials say the hikes would have been even steeper without the state’s reinsurance program. Without that financial backstop, insurers estimated individual market rates would have surged by 69%. The reinsurance program helps cover high-cost claims, keeping premiums more stable for everyone. Lawmakers extended the program earlier this year.

Minnesota Department of Commerce Commissioner Grace Arnold says

“We extended a reinsurance program that offsets high-cost claims and stabilizes premiums in the individual market. As steep as these rate increases are, without reinsurance, they would have soared to nearly 70%.”

The finalized rates apply to plans sold on MNsure and directly through insurers.