Insurers seek nearly 40% increase in premiums on Western Slope as state blames federal policies

Colorado health insurers have asked regulators to approve a 28.4% average increase to health insurance premium prices for next year, which would be the highest percentage increase since 2018.

Democrats blame the federal tax break and spending cut bill recently passed by congressional Republicans and signed into law by President Donald Trump earlier this month.

“We have been warning folks that the chaos being caused by the federal government for our health insurance markets was going to create real pain for Coloradans. These rate filings are a direct reflection of that,” Colorado Insurance Commissioner Michael Conway said in a statement.

The increase will affect private health insurance premiums for the individual market, or the monthly cost about 300,000 Coloradans pay for coverage. It doesn’t encompass people who get health insurance through their employer. The requested increases vary by insurer, with Rocky Mountain HMO asking for a 36.4% increase at the high end and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of CO asking for a 15.3% increase.

It will also vary based on where a person lives. On the Western Slope, insurers have asked for a 38.8% increase. Pueblo and the Eastern Plains have a requested increase of 30.4% and 33.4% increase, respectively. Denver, where about 163,000 people are affected, has a requested increase of 35.4%.

A 45-year-old in Denver with a silver plan could see an approximately $1,500 increase in their annual premium cost. For a similarly-aged person on the Western Slope, that number might be over $2,800.

“We have not seen premium increases like this since the first Trump administration,” Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, said in a statement. “Despite this, we will continue doing all that we can to increase access and save people money, but it’s really hard to do when what Congress is doing is leading to huge increases in the cost of health care nationally. I wanted people to know about these increases as soon as possible so Coloradans can plan.”

The federal bill did not extend enhanced subsidies for consumers created during the COVID-19 pandemic, including allowing subsidies for people making over 400% of the federal poverty level and raising them for people making between 100% and 400% of the poverty level. That saved a 60-year-old who makes $50,000 an average of $356 on their premium, according to research from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

New Medicaid rules in the federal bill, such as work requirements and more frequent eligibility checks, will likely also result in more uninsured Coloradans and put pressure on the private insurance market.

Average statewide rate increases were 5.6% in 2025, 9.7% in 2024, 10.4% in 2023 and 1.1% in 2022. In 2018, there was a 34.3% increase.

The state’s insurance division still needs to review the filings from insurers and Conway must approve the rate increase requests.

Editor’s note: This story first appeared on Colorado Newsline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Colorado Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Quentin Young for questions: info@coloradonewsline.com.