Health insurance brokers in Minnesota

• 8 vs 27percent drops in Minnesota marketplace sign ups versus paid, active coverage from 2025 to 2026
• 200percent of the poverty level, the income ceiling for MinnesotaCare, the state's Basic Health Program
• $0what a broker costs you, in Minnesota and everywhere else

Minnesota lost more coverage than the sign up numbers show

139,251 Minnesotans picked a private plan through MNsure for 2026, down from a record 151,512 the year before, a drop of about 8 percent. But KFF found that effectuated enrollment, meaning people who paid their premium and still had the policy in February, fell about 27 percent. Minnesota and the District of Columbia were the only state run marketplaces where the share of sign ups that turned into paid coverage was below average.

Why Minnesota was hit differently

Minnesota is one of only a handful of places with a Basic Health Program. It is called MinnesotaCare, and it covers many people with income up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level who would otherwise be buying a marketplace plan. That leaves MNsure's private plan buyers skewing toward higher incomes.

On the other end, if your income is lower, MinnesotaCare or Medical Assistance may fit better than any private plan, and both accept applications all year. That answer ends with me selling you nothing, and it is still the right answer.

What changes for 2027

Premiums are rising by double digits again. One carrier's approved average increase in the individual market is about 21 percent, and the others fall between roughly 10 and 18 percent, according to the Minnesota Department of Commerce figures reported by MPR News.

UCare plans are gone. UCare was acquired by another carrier in early 2026, and for 2027 only that carrier's own branded plans continue. If you were with UCare, read your renewal notice closely and check that your doctors and prescriptions still work in whatever plan it offers you, because a renewal is not a comparison. A new carrier also joins MNsure in northeast Minnesota for 2027.

MNsure says carriers will offer 211 medical and dental plans for 2027, and every Minnesotan has at least two insurers to choose from, with most having three or more. Every bronze plan sold through MNsure now works with a health savings account. Minnesota's reinsurance program is approved only through 2027, so this is a good year to understand what you are paying, not just what renews.

Open enrollment dates for 2027 coverage in Minnesota

Minnesota runs its own exchange, so MNsure sets its own enrollment window. Open enrollment for 2027 began November 1, 2026 and is scheduled to run through January 15, 2027. In past years MNsure has used December 15 as the cutoff for coverage starting January 1, with later choices starting February 1, so confirm the exact cutoff on MNsure.org before you rely on it.

• November 1, 2026Open enrollment begins for 2027 coverage on MNsure
• December 15, 2026Expected deadline for coverage starting January 1, 2027
• January 15, 2027Open enrollment closes

Outside that window you need a qualifying life event, such as losing job based coverage, moving to Minnesota, marriage, or a new baby, which usually opens a 60 day window. MinnesotaCare and Medical Assistance are different: if you qualify, you can enroll at any time of year.

Every 2027 change in Minnesota, carrier by carrier →

How to choose a health insurance broker in Minnesota

Anyone can put "broker" on a website. These are the questions that separate the real ones, and you can ask every one of them in a five minute phone call.

1. Verify the license before anything else

   Ask for the license number and the NPN, then look them up yourself. Minnesota agents can be checked through the Minnesota Department of Commerce license lookup, and every agent in the country is searchable through the NAIC lookup. An agent who hesitates to give you those numbers has told you everything you need to know. Mine are on this page and on my license page.

2. Ask whether they are independent or captive

   A captive agent works for one insurance company and can only sell you that company's plans. An independent broker is appointed with many carriers and compares across them. Neither is dishonest, but only one of them can tell you when a competitor has the better plan for you.

3. Ask what it costs, and be suspicious of any answer other than nothing

   Brokers are paid by the insurance carriers. The premium is identical whether you enroll through a broker, on your own, or directly with the carrier. Nobody should charge you a fee to enroll you in an individual marketplace plan.

4. Ask how many carriers they can actually quote

   "We shop the whole market" is a slogan until someone puts a number on it. Ask which carriers they are appointed with in Minnesota, and ask them to show you the comparison rather than describe it.

5. Ask whether they will still be there in March

   Plenty of agents are enthusiastic in December and unreachable in the spring, which is exactly when a claim gets denied or a doctor turns out to be out of network. Ask who you call when something goes wrong. The answer should be a person, not a call center.

6. Read the reviews, and look at the dates

   A handful of genuine reviews spread over time tells you more than a wall of them that all landed in the same week. Mine are on my Google profile and they arrived one at a time, from clients who agreed to write one.

What working with me looks like

You tell me your ZIP code, who needs coverage, and roughly what you expect to earn this year. I check whether you are likely to qualify for financial help, then walk you through the options that fit, including coverage sold outside the state exchange. If a plan through the state exchange is the right answer for you, I will say so plainly and point you to a certified helper there, since that is the door to any subsidy. For coverage I can place directly, I handle the enrollment paperwork and stay your point of contact afterward.

Most first conversations take about ten minutes. There is no cost and no obligation, and I am not going to pressure you into a plan, because a client who was pushed into the wrong coverage is a client who leaves.

Where I work in Minnesota

Statewide. Most of my work happens over the phone or a video call, so where you are in Minnesota changes nothing about the process.

• Minneapolis
• Saint Paul
• Rochester
• Bloomington
• Duluth
• Brooklyn Park
• Plymouth
• Woodbury
• Maple Grove
• Lakeville
• Blaine
• St. Cloud
• Eagan
• Burnsville
• Eden Prairie
• Coon Rapids
• Mankato
• Moorhead
• Apple Valley
• Edina

I am also licensed in every other state, so if you are moving or splitting time between two states, that usually is not a problem either.

Who I help most in Minnesota

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 5.1 percent of people in Minnesota had no health insurance in 2024, below the national rate of 8.2 percent.

Individuals and families buying their own coverage, self employed people and 1099 contractors, farmers, small business owners, people who just lost employer coverage, and early retirees bridging the gap to Medicare. In Minnesota I spend a lot of time near the subsidy cliff, where the income estimate decides almost everything.