Participation in Kansas Marketplace has Continued to Rise in Recent Years

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Nov. 21, 2023

Media Contact:
Theresa Freed
Director of Strategic Communication and Engagement
Kansas Health Institute
tfreed@khi.org
Desk: 785-233-5443
Cell: 316-305-5190

TOPEKA, KANSAS, November 2023 – As plan year 2024 health insurance open enrollment began Nov. 1, the Kansas Health Institute’s latest research looks at the 2023 plan year open enrollment period. During that time (from Nov 1. 2022, through Jan. 15, 2023), a record 124,473 Kansans selected or were automatically re-enrolled in a health insurance plan through the federally facilitated health insurance marketplace.

“Participation in the Kansas marketplace has continued to rise in recent years,” said Linda Sheppard, KHI Team Leader. “We are watching closely if that trend will continue for the 2024 plan year. There are a number of factors that could drive those numbers even higher.”

Some of those factors that impact marketplace enrollment include:

• Rising private health insurance costs.
• The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 extends the enhanced financial assistance made available through the American Rescue Plan Act without interruption through 2025.
• Medicaid unwinding process (eligibility verification process) has restarted; some who are no longer eligible for Medicaid coverage may shift to the marketplace.

“While the enhanced subsidies have been extended, they are not permanent,” said Sheppard. “In 2026, without enhanced subsidies, marketplace enrollment levels may return to what we saw in 2021.”

Overall, the average monthly premium paid by Kansans selecting a plan during the 2023 plan year open enrollment was $139, a $10 decrease compared to 2022. Kansas enrollees receiving Advance Premium Tax Credits (APTC) on average paid $97 per month in 2023, compared to $104 in 2022. Enrollees without APTC paid $586 in 2023, compared to $562 in 2022.

After taking into account APTC received, the average monthly premium paid by Kansas enrollees was 36.3% higher than the average monthly premium ($102) for enrollees across all 33 states (including Kansas) operating on the federally facilitated marketplace. Nine in 10 (91.4%) marketplace enrollees took advantage of APTC to reduce the cost of their monthly premium payments in 2023.

Eight insurers combined offered 128 plans on the Kansas marketplace in 2023. All counties in Kansas had at least two insurers offering coverage. For the 2024 plan year, eight insurers are offering 101 plans.

The recent KHI publication on marketplace participation provides summary data on Kansas enrollee characteristics, plan selection, financial assistance, premiums and stand-alone dental insurance in Kansas. Read the KHI brief, Marketplace Enrollment Reached Record High in 2023.

Background: The marketplace is a service that helps people shop for and enroll in health insurance. Learn more about the marketplace at HealthCare.gov.