Good morning. If you put your techs on a company health plan, your 2027 renewal is landing this quarter — and the early filings say it won't be gentle. Before you rubber-stamp it, here's what's behind the number and the window you've got to act on it.
Top story: insurers want about 14% more on group plans for 2027
Small-group health insurers have asked state regulators for a median 14% rate increase for 2027 — the fully-insured plans most trades shops buy to cover a crew. That's from a Peterson-KFF review of 295 insurers across all 50 states and DC, and it's up from the roughly 11% they requested a year earlier.
These are requests, not final rates — regulators still review them — but they set the starting line for the quote your broker brings you. And they cluster high: 59% of insurers asked for 10% to 20%, with the middle of the pack running from 10% up to 18%. Your renewal can land anywhere in that band.
It stacks on a bill that's already heavy. Employer family coverage averaged $28,303 in 2026, up 5% in a year (KFF, published 22 October) — and at smaller firms (10 to 199 workers), your techs carry more of that out of their own pay, about $9,687 toward family cover, than the $6,840 at firms of 200 or more.
Quick hits
What's pushing it. Insurers put the underlying jump in health-care costs — price plus how much care people use — at a median 10.8% for 2027 (Peterson-KFF). On top of that, diabetes GLP-1 drug use keeps climbing, and behavioral-health spending has grown more than 20% a year for two years running.
The healthy-group drain. As healthier small businesses shift to level-funded and self-funded plans, the fully-insured small-group pool left behind gets sicker and pricier. That pool has shrunk from about 17 million people to 10 million since 2013 — a 41% drop — while level-funded setups went from 2% of the market in 2021 to over 11% by 2025 (Peterson-KFF).
This is the group plan — not the one you buy yourself. If you or your techs buy individual coverage on the ACA Marketplace, that's a separate 2027 problem, and we covered it in a prior issue. Today is strictly about the plan your company sponsors.
The Tip: work the renewal, don't rubber-stamp it
A 14% ask is a starting point, not a verdict. Three moves this quarter. First, get your renewal number from your broker 60 to 90 days before it takes effect — not two weeks out — so you have room to shop it. Second, have your broker price alternatives to a straight fully-insured renewal: a level-funded plan (which is exactly where the healthier groups are heading), a higher-deductible plan paired with an HSA, or an ICHRA, where you fund what employees spend on their own coverage instead of running a group plan. Third, before you push any of the increase onto your techs, price what that does to keeping them — in a tight labor market, the plan is part of the paycheck.
Tool watch: [Not sponsored]
Walk into the renewal knowing what "normal" looks like. KFF's Employer Health Benefits Survey (kff.org) is a free, public benchmark — it's the source behind the $28,303 figure above — with average premiums, deductibles and worker contributions, broken out for small firms. Pull it before your broker call so you can tell whether your quote tracks the market or runs ahead of it. It's free, and it's the same data the benefits consultants read back to you.
That's the callout. See you next time.
The Callout — the business brief for the trades. We label every commercial placement: [Sponsor], [Affiliate], or [Not sponsored]. Today's Tool watch is our own honest read: no one paid for it, and the only thing named is a free public survey. 231J Ramparts Road, Te Anau 9600, New Zealand · Unsubscribe anytime. Nothing in The Callout is insurance, tax or financial advice. The Callout is not a licensed insurance producer. Which plan and plan design fit your shop and your crew is a decision for you and your own licensed broker or benefits advisor. Proposed rates change as states finalize them; figures are national averages, not your renewal.
Sources
Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker — "How Much and Why Premiums Are Going Up for Small Businesses in 2027" (median proposed 2027 increase of 14% among 295 small-group insurers across all 50 states and DC; 59% requested 10–20%, 25th percentile 10%, 75th percentile 18%, from a detailed review of 82 filings across 14 states and DC; median underlying medical trend 10.8%; rising diabetic GLP-1 utilization and one insurer adding 2.4% for medically necessary anti-obesity drugs; behavioral-health spending growing more than 20% annually over two years; fully-insured small-group enrollment down from ~17M to ~10M since 2013, a 41% drop; level-funded arrangements up from 2% in 2021 to over 11% in 2025). Read 6 October 2026. https://www.healthsystemtracker.org/brief/how-much-and-why-premiums-are-going-up-for-small-businesses-in-2027/
KFF — "How Much and Why Premiums Are Going Up for Small Businesses in 2027" (KFF.org companion page to the brief above). https://www.kff.org/health-costs/how-much-and-why-premiums-are-going-up-for-small-businesses-in-2027/
KFF — 2026 Employer Health Benefits Survey (published 22 October 2026; average annual family premium $28,303, up 5% from 2025; single $9,804; average worker contribution for family coverage $7,471; smaller firms (10–199 workers) $9,687 vs larger firms (200+) $6,840). Read first-hand 23 October 2026 (NZDT). https://www.kff.org/health-costs/2026-employer-health-benefits-survey/
KFF — 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey, Summary of Findings (superseded by the 2026 survey above; kept for the 2025 comparison only) (2025 average annual premium for family coverage $26,993, up 6%; single coverage $9,325, up 5%; average worker contribution for family coverage $6,850 across all firms; at smaller firms, average worker contribution for family coverage about $8,889). Read 6 October 2026. https://www.kff.org/health-costs/2025-employer-health-benefits-survey/ · summary PDF: https://files.kff.org/attachment/Employer-Health-Benefits-Survey-2025-Annual-Survey-Summary-of-Findings.pdf
Insurance Business — "Small group premiums face 14% hike in 2027, KFF data shows" (median 14% requested for 2027, higher than the 11% requested for 2026; proposed filings subject to state review; drivers include medical inflation, GLP-1 spending at 20.3% of prescription costs, behavioral health; fully-insured small-group enrollment down 41% 2013–2024). Published 10 August 2026. https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/us/news/benefits/small-group-premiums-face-14-hike-in-2027-kff-data-shows-585503.aspx
Healthcare Finance News — "Small business health insurers seek 14% premium increase 2027" (median 14% across 295 insurers in all 50 states and DC; 59% requested 10–20%; filings subject to state regulatory review; median underlying medical cost trend 10.8%; healthier groups departing to self-funded/level-funded leaving a sicker insured pool). Published 11 August 2026. https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/small-business-health-insurers-seek-14-premium-increase-2027
The Callout Issue-071 — the individual ACA Marketplace 2027 story (enhanced premium tax credits, open enrollment) referenced above.
Load-bearing figures read first-hand on 6 October 2026 (US) / 7 October 2026 (NZDT).