Health insurance brokers in Washington

• 22.2percent average rate increase approved for 2027 individual plans, before any financial help
• 12insurers approved to sell individual plans in Washington for 2027
• $0what it costs you to have a broker compare Washington plans

Washington prices silver plans on purpose

Federal tax credits are calculated from the price of a benchmark silver plan. Starting in 2026, Washington adopted what it calls premium alignment: insurers add a load to silver premiums on the exchange, which raises the benchmark and with it the tax credit most Washington Healthplanfinder customers receive. That credit can then be used on any metal level.

The load applies to silver plans sold on the exchange. If you will not qualify for a tax credit, a silver plan bought outside the exchange can be priced differently, which is one of the few cases where shopping outside Washington Healthplanfinder is worth doing.

Cascade Care Savings is smaller for 2027

Washington is one of the few states that adds its own premium help. Cascade Care Savings is available to households up to 250 percent of the federal poverty level who pick a silver or gold Cascade Care plan through Washington Healthplanfinder. It also helps people who cannot receive federal tax credits at all.

The amounts are coming down. For 2027 the maximum is $35 per member per month for federally subsidized enrollees up to 200 percent of the poverty level, $20 between 201 and 250 percent, and $185 for enrollees up to 250 percent who receive no federal subsidy. In 2026 most eligible enrollees could get up to $55, and those without federal help up to $250. If you relied on that help this year, expect your share of the premium to change even if your plan does not.

What changes for 2027

Washington's Insurance Commissioner approved an average increase of 22.2 percent for 2027 individual plans, close to the 22.4 percent insurers requested, with individual carriers ranging from 6.7 to 30.5 percent. Twelve insurers were approved to sell, down from fourteen in 2026. Providence Health Plan, which covered 254 people outside the exchange, will not offer coverage in 2027. Nearly 250,000 Washington residents bought individual plans through the exchange in 2026, about 13 percent fewer than the year before.

With carrier increases that far apart, the plan that was cheapest for you last year may not be this year. That is the whole case for comparing rather than renewing.

Open enrollment dates for 2027 coverage in Washington

Washington runs its own exchange, so Washington Healthplanfinder sets its own calendar, and its January 1 deadline is later than the federal one.

• November 1, 2026Open enrollment begins for 2027 coverage on Washington Healthplanfinder
• December 31, 2026Apply and pick a plan by this date for coverage that starts January 1, 2027
• January 15, 2027Open enrollment closes. Plans picked in January start February 1

Outside that window you need a qualifying life event, such as losing other coverage, a move, marriage, or a new baby, and most of them give you 60 days. Special enrollment in Washington runs through Washington Healthplanfinder, not HealthCare.gov, and Cascade Care Savings are only available on plans bought there.

Every 2027 change in Washington, carrier by carrier →

How to choose a health insurance broker in Washington

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. Washington agents can be checked through the Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner agent and company 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 Washington, 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 Washington

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

• Seattle
• Spokane
• Tacoma
• Vancouver
• Bellevue
• Kent
• Everett
• Renton
• Spokane Valley
• Federal Way
• Yakima
• Kirkland
• Bellingham
• Kennewick
• Olympia
• Pasco
• Richland
• Wenatchee
• Walla Walla
• Port Angeles

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 Washington

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 6.5 percent of people in Washington 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, small business owners, people who just lost employer coverage, and early retirees bridging the gap to Medicare. In Washington I spend a lot of time with people whose income is too high for any premium help and who are absorbing a second large rate increase in a row.