Ranked 6 of 15 states · median $708/mo · CMS PY2026
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A 40-year-old landscape contractor in Michigan pays a median $708/month for a Silver plan before subsidies — 6th of 15 on cost. The cheapest plan in the state is $385 from Ambetter from Meridian in Genesee. On highest out-of-pocket maximum, Michigan ranks 6 of 15 for this occupation.
Injury exposure means the number that matters is the out-of-pocket maximum, not the premium. A single ER visit and follow-up can hit that ceiling in one month, so these pages rank states by worst-case annual exposure rather than by monthly cost.
Occupational context: Heat illness; equipment injury; pesticide exposure.
Two things get confused here constantly. Risk exposure decides what coverage you should buy. It does not decide what you are charged — Michigan carriers rate on age, ZIP, tobacco and family size, full stop. A landscape contractor with a bad back and a healthy 40-year-old office worker in the same county see the same number.
Premium is set by rating area, so a landscape contractor in one Michigan county can pay materially more than one an hour away. Six counties from across the state, cheapest Silver plan for a 40-year-old:
| County | Cheapest Silver @40 | Issuer | Deductible | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson | $445 | Ambetter from Meridian | $7,000 | 5 |
| Barry | $471 | Ambetter from Meridian | $7,000 | 5 |
| Oakland | $503 | Blue Care Network of Michigan | $5,800 | 5 |
| Shiawassee | $511 | UnitedHealthcare | $4,000 | 5 |
| Bay | $584 | Blue Care Network of Michigan | $5,800 | 4 |
| Osceola | $591 | Ambetter from Meridian | $7,000 | 5 |
The spread across just these six is $147/month — $1,758 a year for the same metal tier. Statewide the range runs $385 to $1,048. Coverage by County publishes all 83 Michigan counties individually.
| Michigan — worst-case exposure | 2026 |
|---|---|
| Lowest annual out-of-pocket maximum | $6,500 |
| Highest annual out-of-pocket maximum | $10,600 |
| Cheapest Gold plan @40 | $409 — Ambetter from Meridian |
| Gold deductible | $2,000 |
| Cheapest Silver @40 | $385 — Ambetter from Meridian |
| Cheapest Silver @50 | $538 |
For a landscape contractor, the gap between $6,500 and $10,600 in annual out-of-pocket maximum is worth more than any premium difference on this page. One serious injury reaches that ceiling regardless of which plan you picked.
Source: CMS Plan Year 2026 Qualified Health Plan Landscape file. 3,383 plan records across 83 Michigan counties. Full-price filed rates before premium tax credits — verify at enrollment.
Cheaper for the same coverage: South Carolina ($636), Alabama ($680), Wisconsin ($687). More expensive: South Dakota ($725), Oklahoma ($731), Kansas ($765).
Side-by-side: Michigan vs Alabama · Michigan vs Wisconsin · Michigan vs South Dakota · Michigan vs Oklahoma
A caveat on the table above: rating is by residence, not by job site. A landscape contractor living in Michigan and working across a state line still buys Michigan plans. A genuine permanent move does trigger a special enrollment period, but the plan year restarts with a fresh deductible.
Deduction categories that generally fit this trade: Equipment, truck, trailer, materials, licensing. Note the ordering problem with health premiums: the §162(l) deduction lowers your AGI, and your AGI is what sets your premium tax credit, so the two calculate against each other. That is a CPA conversation and worth having before you enroll, not after.
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 Michigan is $385 per month from Ambetter from Meridian, with a state median of $708. Both figures are full price before premium tax credits; most buyers pay less after subsidies.
It cannot happen on an exchange plan. Rating in Michigan 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: EPO, HMO, PPO.
Michigan ranks 6 of 15 states covered here, at a median $708 per month. Indiana is cheapest at $558 and Nebraska is most expensive at $875.
Below the cliff. At this income a single-person household remains eligible for a premium tax credit in 2026.
This occupation is below the cliff in all 21 states reported.
What this figure is. It is the median annual wage BLS reports for Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers (SOC 37-3011) in Michigan. 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 landscape contractor. 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 Michigan specifically — county-by-county carriers, plan data and enrollment help — I publish that on Coverage by County, including a page written for Landscape Contractors in Michigan and a blog covering deductibles, subsidies and special enrollment.
The Michigan market currently runs to 7 carriers over 83 counties. Carriers re-file every year, and for Landscape Contractors 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. Michigan has not finalised, so treat exact local 2027 pricing as unavailable rather than unknown.
Mark November 1, 2026 to open and December 15 to act. That second date guarantees cover from January 1 in Michigan regardless of how the current litigation over the enrollment window resolves.
In your favour: PPOs are sold in all 83 Michigan counties. That is the type most likely to pay toward out-of-network care, and worth defending at renewal if your work as a landscape contractor 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 Michigan’s carriers under a deadline; today you can do it without one.
Give me a ZIP and I will tell you three things:
Coverage for Landscape Contractors is priced county by county across Michigan. Enter your ZIP and I will show you what is on the table.