Health insurance going up for self-employed Washington residents

Sep. 9—Washington residents who are self-employed or recently retired will pay much higher prices in 2027 if they want to keep health insurance.

Those persons who rely on insurance exchanges, which also include employers with less than 50 employees, are expected to face an average of 22.2% higher premiums than they paid in 2026, according to the Washington state Office of Insurance Commissioner.

The vast majority of state residents enrolled in private health insurance plans receive their coverage through their employers. The exchanges are used by about 250,000 rate payers to maintain health insurance.

"This is, unfortunately, a reflection of the increasing cost of care," Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer said in a news release. "Families shouldn't experience sticker shock every year when shopping for health insurance, but these pressures are likely to continue without changes that slow health care spending, improve affordability and keep more people covered."

The state has very little control over the rates that insurance companies charge, said Aaron VanTuyl, spokesman for the insurance commissioner's office.

"If they justify the need for the increase — here's what our expenses were, here's the cost of prescription drugs, here's the cost of health care, here's a projection of who will need services — we are legally required to approve the increases," he said.

The insurance commissioner's staff does not specifically track the costs of insurance used by employers like it does for the exchanges.

"You can look at these increases and maybe draw some conclusions about what those who get insurance from employers will be facing," VanTuyl said. "These factors will be factors for larger employers and their health plans."

As for the exchanges, the state noted that fewer people were using them to purchase coverage.

Some 13% fewer people used the exchanges in Washington state in 2026 than the previous year. That was the largest drop in enrollment since 2012, due in part to the decision not to extend the Enhanced Premium Tax credits last year, Kurderer said in the release.

Those tax credits had helped enrollees cut their annual premium costs by about $1,330, meaning that the self-employed and recent retirees had to bear those added costs.

VanTuyl noted that many of those who kept insurance through the exchanges are those who need health care the most.

"The assumption is that people are looking at their bottom line and are deciding, 'I'm young and healthy and I probably won't need insurance' are more likely to roll the dice than those who may require medical attention at some point," he said.

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. criticized her colleagues across the aisle for letting the tax credits expire.

"This massive rate increase is a direct result of the health care crisis that Republicans have created by prioritizing billionaires over American families," Murray said in a news release. "Costs are skyrocketing while patients are losing health coverage — and it didn't have to be this way."

She noted that the projected increase for 2027 follows a nearly identical 21% increase in 2026. A family of four in Washington state who earns $130,000 saw their average annual premium go up by $12,392, costing them a total of $23,442 a year, Murray said.

She also noted that hospital and clinics in Washington face $160 million less in federal funding while dealing with a 5.6% spike in uncompensated care. As a result, some 37 hospitals, clinics and nursing homes have announced cuts to service, have closed or are closing.

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