Washington – The District of Columbia Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB) has received 208 proposed health insurance plan rates for annual review in advance of open enrollment for plan year 2023. The proposed rates were submitted for DC Health Link, the District of Columbia’s health insurance marketplace, from Aetna, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Kaiser Permanente and United Healthcare.

The proposed rates are for individuals, families and small businesses for the 2023 plan year. Overall, the number of plans submitted for 2022 is up by 51 from those submitted for 2022.

The number of small group plans increased from 157 to 208 while the number of individual plans remained at 27. One reason for the increase in small group plans is the introduction of standard plans in that market. The set of standard plans has the same benefit and cost sharing across all four carriers.

“In keeping with the Bowser Administration’s vision to protect residents and small business owners, DISB ensures that District insurance rates are adequate and fair,” said DISB Commissioner Karima M. Woods. “The Department is scrutinizing the proposed rates and will make a determination on final rates after a public hearing in September.”

In the individual market, CareFirst proposed an average increase of 29.3 percent for HMO plans and an average increase of 17.9 percent for PPO plans. Kaiser proposed an average increase of 17.0 percent. For small group plans, CareFirst filed average rate increases of 18.3 percent for HMO plans and 13.3 percent for the PPO plans. Kaiser proposed an average increase of 11.0 percent. Aetna filed for an average decrease of 7.0 percent for HMO plans and an average increase of 5.0 percent for PPO plans. Finally, United Healthcare proposed an average increase of 13.8 percent and 10.1 percent for its two HMOs and 10.4 percent for its PPO plans. Information on the proposed individual and small group rates is available here.

View the proposed rate filings here. For additional information on the District's Health Rate Review Process, visit here.

The public can comment on the proposed rates by sending an email to [email protected].

About DISB

The mission of the Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking (DISB) is three-fold:

(1) cultivate a regulatory environment that protects consumers and attracts and retains financial services firms to the District; (2) empower and educate residents on financial matters; and (3) provide financing for District small businesses.

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