Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance releases health insurance rates for 2025 with more choices for Missourians

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - The Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance (DCI) announces the release of final health insurance rates for Missouri's 2025 individual market.

"I am pleased Missourians will continue to have more choices for plan year 2025," said Chlora Lindley-Myers, Director of the Department of Commerce and Insurance. "In 2025, we will have ten insurance companies offering individual market coverage in the state, and with these options, our department encourages consumers to shop carefully for health insurance coverage."

Beginning in 2025, every county in Missouri will have at least two insurance companies offering health plans in the individual market. This represents an important change, ensuring choices for Missourians, particularly in the rural parts of the state.

Well over half of Missouri's counties now have five or more insurance companies offering coverage in the individual market (71 out of 115). Nearly a third of the counties in the state have six or more companies offering coverage (37 of 115). The 115 jurisdictions include 114 counties plus the City of St. Louis.

"Most companies have filed rates that either remain steady, with average increases of less than 1% or have filed decreases in their rates," said Lindley-Myers. "Overall, the rates finalized today show stabilization in the individual health insurance market, with the highest average rate increases equal to or just below medical cost inflation trends."

Missourians can find more information about the rate review process and review rate information on DCI's website at insurance.mo.gov/consumers/health/index.php.

Annual open enrollment for health insurance coverage in 2025 begins November 1, 2024. For coverage to start January 1, 2025, consumers must enroll or change their plan by December 15, 2024. Consumers that miss the December 15^th deadline have until January 15, 2025, to enroll; however, coverage will not begin until February 1, 2025, for consumers who enroll after December 15, 2024.

Shopping for health insurance can be complicated. DCI offers the following tips to help make the process a little easier:

• Consider more than just cost when choosing a health plan. It's important to understand what services the policy will cover, the costs you'll be responsible for, and your current and potential future health care needs, from anticipated surgeries to prescription drugs.
• Review and compare the costs associated with each health plan, including all of the out-of-pocket costs - premiums, deductibles, co-pays, and co-insurance amounts.
• Talk to your health care providers about their plan network participation. A health carrier's provider directory provides a snapshot in time of the plan's network. Talking directly to your healthcare providers allows you to stay up to date about your provider's current and future participation in a particular plan's network.
• Be wary of advertisements that tout low-cost or no cost health coverage and ask questions about the type of policy before you buy. If it sounds too good to be true, it likely is.
• Talk with a trusted insurance agent or other assister (like a navigator or a certified application counselor) for more specific information about policies and coverage.
• Use good privacy protection practices and be vigilant about protecting your personal information:
  • Use strong passwords and change them regularly.
  • Safeguard your devices by ensuring their operating systems are up to date.
  • Be cautious of unsolicited emails, phone calls, or text messages requesting your personal or financial information.
  • When asked for personal information, whether online or over the phone, think twice about why the information is needed, who will use it, and how it will be used. If you have questions, ask them!

You can check DCI's Health Insurance Shopping Tool for additional tips to find the policy that meets your needs.

For any insurance questions, or to verify whether a producer or assister is licensed, Missouri consumers can call DCI's Insurance Consumer Hotline at 800-726-7390 or visit insurance.mo.gov/consumers/.

DCI is charged with protecting Missouri consumers through oversight of the insurance industry, banks, credit unions, utilities, and various professional licensees operating in the state. For more information about the department, please visit our website at dci.mo.gov.