Private health insurance premiums to reach new record high this year

With the cost of everything piling pressure on household finances, Americans are facing another year of significant increases in the cost of private health insurance.

While the increase in 2022 was 0.67%, last year saw a 4% surge and 2024 is set to repeat this to take the average cost of private health insurance premiums to $584 per month or $7,008 per year, according to an analysis of plans available on the ValuePenguin marketplace.

The increase is driven by rising costs for health care providers and insurers and will mean increases for consumers in 35 states, while 15 may see their premiums stay at last year’s levels or even decrease.

The highest monthly cost will be in Alaska, where a 15% year-over-year increase will take the average private health insurance premium to $948. There are also double-digit increases predicted for Vermont, New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, California, Maine, Oregon, South Carolina, and Michigan.

The biggest decreases are expected in South Dakota, where premiums could fall 10%, although at $715 per month they will remain well above the national average. The state with the lowest average premium will be New Hampshire with a $372 monthly average premium, in line with last year.

"Amid rising premiums - 57% of insured Americans worry about the future of their health care,” said Divya Sangameshwar, ValuePenguin.com health insurance expert. “While rising premiums and out of pocket expenses are Americans' biggest worry, many also worry about the decline in the quality and access to healthcare, and a further 10% worry about losing healthcare coverage altogether."