Iowa health insurance in 2027: the KFF benchmark against every state, the insurers, lowest prices by county, Open Enrollment dates and the tax-credit line.
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Short answer: Iowa buys its marketplace plans through HealthCare.gov. KFF’s 2027 benchmark Silver premium for a 40-year-old is $528 a month there, 25% below the U.S. average of $704 and 5th of the 51 states and D.C. from cheapest. Below the 2027 tax-credit line the credit absorbs most of the price; above it, the full price is what you pay.
The cheapest 2027 benchmark in the country is New Hampshire ($486) and the dearest Vermont ($1,313); Iowa sits at $528. The benchmark is the second-lowest-cost Silver plan for a 40-year-old, the plan the tax credit is measured against, so below the credit line every state costs the same share of income and the ranking only bites above it.
5 insurers sell Iowa marketplace plans for 2027: Wellmark (all 99 counties), Oscar (78 counties), Ambetter (73 counties), UnitedHealthcare (17 counties) and Avera Health Plans (7 counties).
No 2027 marketplace plan in Iowa is a PPO: every plan is an EPO or an HMO, and those cover routine care only inside their network.
| Area | Bronze | Silver | Gold | Silver deductible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Des Moines (Polk County) | $356 | $471 | $465 | $4,700 |
| Cedar Rapids (Linn County) | $360 | $493 | $471 | $5,700 |
| Davenport (Scott County) | $360 | $493 | $471 | $5,700 |
| Iowa City (Johnson County) | $361 | $536 | $519 | $5,000 |
| Waterloo (Black Hawk County) | $360 | $493 | $471 | $5,700 |
Lowest 2027 prices for a 40-year-old, a month, before any tax credit, from the CMS 2027 plan file.
| County | Rating area | Insurers | Lowest Silver, age 40 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adair | 4 | 4 | $535 |
| Adams | 4 | 3 | $604 |
| Allamakee | 7 | 2 | $556 |
| Appanoose | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Audubon | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Benton | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Black Hawk | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Boone | 1 | 3 | $476 |
| Bremer | 7 | 2 | $534 |
| Buchanan | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Buena Vista | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Butler | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Calhoun | 1 | 2 | $545 |
| Carroll | 1 | 2 | $545 |
| Cass | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Cedar | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Cerro Gordo | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Cherokee | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Chickasaw | 7 | 3 | $556 |
| Clarke | 4 | 3 | $604 |
| Clay | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Clayton | 6 | 3 | $536 |
| Clinton | 6 | 3 | $495 |
| Crawford | 3 | 2 | $525 |
| Dallas | 2 | 3 | $471 |
| Davis | 5 | 2 | $536 |
| Decatur | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Delaware | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Des Moines | 5 | 2 | $536 |
| Dickinson | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Dubuque | 6 | 2 | $493 |
| Emmet | 7 | 2 | $581 |
| Fayette | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Floyd | 7 | 3 | $556 |
| Franklin | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Fremont | 4 | 3 | $600 |
| Greene | 1 | 2 | $545 |
| Grundy | 1 | 2 | $501 |
| Guthrie | 4 | 3 | $604 |
| Hamilton | 1 | 3 | $476 |
| Hancock | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Hardin | 1 | 3 | $476 |
| Harrison | 4 | 3 | $604 |
| Henry | 5 | 2 | $536 |
| Howard | 7 | 3 | $556 |
| Humboldt | 7 | 2 | $581 |
| Ida | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Iowa | 6 | 2 | $536 |
| Jackson | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Jasper | 2 | 3 | $471 |
| Jefferson | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Johnson | 6 | 3 | $536 |
| Jones | 6 | 2 | $493 |
| Keokuk | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Kossuth | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Lee | 5 | 2 | $536 |
| Linn | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Louisa | 5 | 2 | $536 |
| Lucas | 5 | 2 | $536 |
| Lyon | 3 | 2 | $604 |
| Madison | 2 | 3 | $471 |
| Mahaska | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Marion | 2 | 3 | $471 |
| Marshall | 1 | 2 | $501 |
| Mills | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Mitchell | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Monona | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Monroe | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Montgomery | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Muscatine | 5 | 1 | $493 |
| O'Brien | 3 | 2 | $604 |
| Osceola | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Page | 4 | 3 | $600 |
| Palo Alto | 3 | 3 | $525 |
| Plymouth | 3 | 2 | $595 |
| Pocahontas | 3 | 2 | $525 |
| Polk | 2 | 3 | $471 |
| Pottawattamie | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Poweshiek | 1 | 2 | $501 |
| Ringgold | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Sac | 3 | 2 | $595 |
| Scott | 6 | 3 | $493 |
| Shelby | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Sioux | 3 | 4 | $525 |
| Story | 1 | 2 | $545 |
| Tama | 1 | 3 | $476 |
| Taylor | 4 | 3 | $600 |
| Union | 4 | 4 | $600 |
| Van Buren | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Wapello | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Warren | 2 | 3 | $471 |
| Washington | 5 | 2 | $536 |
| Wayne | 5 | 3 | $536 |
| Webster | 1 | 1 | $545 |
| Winnebago | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Winneshiek | 7 | 2 | $556 |
| Woodbury | 3 | 2 | $555 |
| Worth | 7 | 3 | $509 |
| Wright | 7 | 2 | $581 |
Premiums you pay for yourself come back off your income on Form 7206, up to the profit of the business. The self-employed health insurance deduction in Iowa and the S-corp version walk through Iowa’s tax treatment with a calculator; the self-employed ranking puts Iowa against every other state at full price.
A plan from another state does not come along: a new Iowa address opens a 60-day window. Moving to Iowa has the dates, and the Iowa county pages on Coverage by County have every plan filed.
Want this worked out for your ZIP?
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See my options →“I don’t know why I was paying so much for my BCBS plan. I wasn’t even using it, maybe because the brand has such a big network, but now I pay half as much and I don’t have a deductible.”
The insurance company pays the agent, never you, and the premium is the same either way.
One licensed agent, NPN #22052447, who sells marketplace and private plans, so you hear about both.
Your ZIP code is the only thing needed to see what is available where you live.
KFF's 2027 benchmark Silver premium for a 40-year-old is $528 a month before any tax credit, 5 of 51 from cheapest. Below the tax-credit line the credit caps the benchmark at a share of income.
5 insurers sell Iowa marketplace plans for 2027: Wellmark (all 99 counties), Oscar (78 counties), Ambetter (73 counties), UnitedHealthcare (17 counties) and Avera Health Plans (7 counties).
November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027 on HealthCare.gov; pick a plan by December 15, 2026 for a January 1 start.
General information, not a quote or an offer of coverage. Private plans are medically underwritten: they ask health questions, can decline or exclude a condition, are not ACA coverage and get no tax credit. Daniel Griffin, licensed independent agent, NPN #22052447, is not tied to any single carrier and not affiliated with the U.S. government.
Iowa uses HealthCare.gov. Open Enrollment runs November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027; pick a plan by December 15 for coverage that starts January 1. Outside those dates a qualifying event, such as a move into Iowa, losing other coverage, marriage or a new child, opens a 60-day window.
Send your Iowa ZIP code. A licensed agent compares every plan filed where you live and checks your doctors. It costs nothing, and you deal with a licensed agent, not a call center.
What You Pay Above the Subsidy Cliff, State by State · Health Insurance Comparison Chart by State · Health Insurance Rating Areas, State by State · Health Insurance Premiums by Age, State by State · Insurers Leaving the ACA Marketplace in 2027 · Cheapest States for Health Insurance 2026 — All 51 Jurisdictions · Cheapest States for Health Insurance (2026) · 7 States With No PPO Plans · Where One Insurer Controls the Market · The Age Curve, State by State · Where Your County Matters Most · Carrier Competition by State
Every insurer and price filed in your county. A licensed agent confirms your exact number, free.
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