Ranked 14 of 15 states · median $828/mo · CMS PY2026
Prefer to talk? Call (713) 575-9904
Licensed Independent Agent · NPN #22052447 · 23 States
A 40-year-old consultant in Arkansas pays a median $828/month for a Silver plan before subsidies — 14th of 15 on cost. The cheapest plan in the state is $753 from Octave in Arkansas. On counties covered, Arkansas ranks 9 of 15 for this occupation.
Work that crosses county and state lines makes network geography the binding constraint. A cheap HMO that only contracts in one metro is worthless 200 miles away, so these pages rank states by network reach and flag the ones with no PPO on the exchange at all.
Occupational context: Travel fatigue; sedentary and irregular-schedule strain.
None of that changes your price. ACA plans in Arkansas are community rated — premium varies by age, ZIP code, tobacco use and household size only. Your occupation cannot be used to rate you, decline you, or exclude a condition. What it changes is which plan design is the right bet.
Premium is set by rating area rather than by county, so counties in the same area price identically. Six counties from across Arkansas, cheapest Silver plan for a 40-year-old:
| County | Cheapest Silver @40 | Issuer | Deductible | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madison | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Newton | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Pope | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Searcy | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Washington | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Benton | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
All six fall in the same rating area, so they price identically at $753. Statewide the range still runs $753 to $879. Coverage by County publishes all 75 Arkansas counties individually.
| Arkansas — network reach | 2026 |
|---|---|
| Counties in the state | 75 |
| Counties with only one carrier | 0 (0%) |
| Plan types available | POS, PPO |
| PPO available on exchange | Yes |
| Carriers filing in the state | 4 |
| Cheapest Silver @40 | $753 — Arkansas |
Arkansas has PPO plans available. For a consultant covering distance, that single fact outweighs premium: 0 of 75 counties here are served by one carrier, so an HMO bought in one metro may leave you out of network for the rest of your route.
Source: CMS Plan Year 2026 Qualified Health Plan Landscape file. 3,900 plan records across 75 Arkansas counties. Full-price filed rates before premium tax credits — verify at enrollment.
Cheaper for the same coverage: Utah ($805), Texas ($807), North Carolina ($828). More expensive: Nebraska ($875).
Side-by-side: Arkansas vs Texas · Arkansas vs North Carolina · Arkansas vs Nebraska
Cross-state numbers are useful for understanding whether Arkansas is treating you well, not for arbitrage. You cannot buy an out-of-state exchange plan. If you are a consultant weighing a relocation for other reasons, the premium difference is a real line item worth putting in the decision.
If you file a Schedule C as a consultant, the categories that usually show up are: Travel, home office, software, professional development. The health premium itself is normally an above-the-line deduction under IRC §162(l), which reduces AGI rather than requiring you to itemize. Your CPA should confirm it against your actual situation.
If your household income is above the subsidy range, ACA is not automatically the answer. There are other categories of coverage that may fit, and they work very differently. That is a conversation, not a web page.
The cheapest Silver plan for a 40-year-old in Arkansas is $753 per month from Octave, with a state median of $828. Both figures are full price before premium tax credits; most buyers pay less after subsidies.
It cannot happen on an exchange plan. Rating in Arkansas uses four inputs only: age, ZIP code, tobacco use and how many people are on the policy. Trade, injury history and pre-existing conditions are all excluded from pricing by law.
Yes. Plan types filed for 2026: POS, PPO.
Arkansas ranks 14 of 15 states covered here, at a median $828 per month. Indiana is cheapest at $558 and Nebraska is most expensive at $875.
Above the cliff. At this income a single-person household receives no premium tax credit for 2026 and pays the full premium.
This occupation is above the cliff in all 19 states reported.
What this figure is. It is the median annual wage BLS reports for Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111) in Arkansas. BLS surveys wage and salary workers and excludes the self-employed, so it is a benchmark for the occupation in this state — not the income of a self-employed consultant. Premium tax credit eligibility is set by household modified adjusted gross income and household size, not by occupation, so treat this as a reference point rather than a determination of what you qualify for.
Why the cliff is back. The enhanced premium tax credits expired on 31 December 2025. For plan year 2026 the 400% FPL limit applies again, so household income above $62,600 ends premium tax credit eligibility outright.
This page compares states. For Arkansas specifically — county-by-county carriers, plan data and enrollment help — I publish that on Coverage by County, including a page written for Consultants in Arkansas and a blog covering deductibles, subsidies and special enrollment.
The Arkansas market currently runs to 4 carriers over 75 counties. Carriers re-file every year, and for Consultants the question that actually decides your renewal is which of them are still there in November.
Rate filings for 2027 point to roughly a 15% median increase nationally, from −1% at one end to 54% at the other. Arkansas has not finalised, so treat exact local 2027 pricing as unavailable rather than unknown.
The window opens November 1, 2026, and December 15 is the date worth writing down — it is what secures January 1 cover in Arkansas and everywhere else. You will find later dates quoted; they stem from a 2025 rule that was vacated in June 2026 and is under appeal.
In your favour: PPOs are sold in all 75 Arkansas counties. That is the type most likely to pay toward out-of-network care, and worth defending at renewal if your work as a consultant takes you around.
Nothing about 2027 is urgent yet, which is exactly why it is worth ten minutes now. Come November you will be choosing between Arkansas’s carriers under a deadline; today you can do it without one.
Give me a ZIP and I will tell you three things:
The sticker price is rarely what Consultants in Arkansas end up paying. Start with a ZIP and I will work out your actual number.