Best Cheap Health Insurance in Ohio (2024)
UnitedHealthcare is the best health insurance company in Ohio. You could pay between $0 and $444 per month, based on your income.
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Best and cheapest health insurance in Ohio
Cheapest health insurance companies in Ohio
Molina is the cheapest health insurance company in Ohio, with Silver plans starting at $398 per month.
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Affordable health insurance in Ohio
Company | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| Molina | $398 - $536 |
| SummaCare | $414 - $485 |
| AultCare | $429 - $560 |
| CareSource | $432 - $574 |
Monthly cost for Silver plans sold in Ohio. Rates are for a 40-year-old.
Molina is the cheapest health insurance company for most of Ohio, but it's not the cheapest everywhere because rates vary by county
SummaCare is the cheapest health insurance company in Akron, where rates start at $414 per month for a 40-year-old buying a Silver plan. SummaCare is only available in the Akron area.
Best health insurance companies in Ohio
UnitedHealthcare is the best health insurance in Ohio for individuals and families.
UHC has affordable plans, good customer satisfaction and high-quality coverage. Plus, many plans include extras such as cash rewards for getting a check-up and free prescriptions for insulin.
Best-rated health insurance companies in Ohio
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Paramount health insurance has the highest quality plans, with a perfect 5-star score from HealthCare.gov. However, it's also the most expensive health insurance company in Ohio and is only available in the northwestern part of the state.
Best health insurance in Ohio for access to doctors
Anthem is the best insurance company in OH if you want access to a wide selection of doctors and hospitals.
Anthem is the most popular health insurance company in Ohio. More than a third of the state has a plan from Anthem. This means that many doctors will accept it.
How much does health insurance cost in Ohio?
The average cost of health insurance in Ohio is $535 per month if you pay full price or $81 per month if you qualify for subsidies based on your income.
Health insurance rates can vary widely based on factors such as how old you are and how much of your medical care the plan covers.
- Seniors pay more than younger people for health insurance. Health insurance costs more as you age because you're more likely to need ongoing medical care. In Ohio, a 60-year-old pays more than twice as much for a plan than a 40-year-old.
- If you have a lower income, you'll pay less for health insurance. That's because subsidies can lower your monthly bill. You're eligible for discounts if you earn less than $58,320 as a single person or less than $120,000 as a family of four. The lower your income, the more you'll save on health insurance.
Get affordable health insurance in Ohio by using subsidies
Many people can qualify for discounted rates by using health insurance subsidies to lower the cost of your health insurance based on your income.
In Ohio, the average cost of health insurance after subsidies is $81 per month.
How much you'll pay is based on your income. The lower your income, the more you'll save.
Subsidies can be applied to plans from any company. Depending on your income, you could find a plan that costs $10 or less per month.
Cheap Ohio health insurance plans by city
Molina Silver 8 is the cheapest Silver plan in Ohio. And it's the cheapest in many of the state's biggest cities, including Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo.
But plan options and rates change based on where you live. If you live in Columbus, the cheapest Silver plan is the Silver Simple PCP Saver from Oscar.
Cheapest health insurance plan by Ohio county
County | Cheapest plan | Monthly rates |
|---|---|---|
| Adams | Molina Silver 8 | $433 |
| Allen | Molina Silver 8 | $455 |
| Ashland | Ambetter Standard Silver | $443 |
| Ashtabula | Molina Silver 8 | $398 |
| Athens | Molina Silver 8 | $473 |
Cheapest Silver plan with rates for a 40-year-old
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Best health insurance by level of coverage
The best health insurance for you depends on how much medical care you expect to need and if you have an income that qualifies you for special programs.
Silver plans are a good choice for most people because they balance coverage and affordability.
Gold plans: Best if you need expensive or ongoing medical care
| Gold plans pay for about 80% of your medical care. |
Gold plans give you the highest level of coverage, which means you pay less for your medical care. They also have the lowest cap on your medical costs, called the out-of-pocket maximum.
Gold plans are also the most expensive tier, costing an average of $603 per month in Ohio.
However, the high monthly cost is worth it if you go to the doctor often, need expensive prescriptions, or have a complex medical condition.
Silver plans: Best if you have average medical needs
| Silver plans pay for about 70% of your medical care. |
Silver plans are the best for most people since they give you good coverage at a moderate price.
Silver plans cost an average of $535 per month.
You'll likely have to pay more before your benefits kick in than you would with a Gold plan. That's because Silver plans usually have higher health insurance deductibles. But if you have typical medical care needs, the lower monthly rate can offset the higher deductible.
Bronze and Catastrophic plans: Best if you're young and healthy
| Bronze plans pay for about 60% of your medical care. |
Bronze and Catastrophic plans have the cheapest rates but the highest deductibles, coinsurance and copays. That means you have to pay more when you get medical care.
Bronze plans cost an average of $440 per month in Ohio. These plans are good if you only see the doctor once in a while and have savings for an emergency. If something serious happens, like surgery or a hospital stay, you'll have to pay several thousand dollars for your medical care, before insurance starts paying for your medical care.
You can only buy a Catastrophic plan if you are under 30 or meet other requirements. And Catastrophic plans don't qualify for Obamacare tax credits, also called subsidies, so you won't be able to lower your monthly rate based on your income.
Silver plans: Best if you have a low income but don't qualify for Medicaid
| Silver plans will pay 73% to 94% of your medical costs if you have a low income. |
Silver plans are the best health insurance plan if you earn too much to qualify for Medicaid. That's because you can get very cheap medical care through cost-sharing reductions (CSRs).
To qualify, you have to make less than about $36,000 per year as a single person or $75,000 per year as a family of four. You can combine cost-sharing reductions with subsidies to get both low monthly rates and cheap health care.
Medicaid: Free health insurance if you have a low-income
Ohio Medicaid is usually free, and it pays for nearly all your medical care.
To qualify for Ohio Medicaid, you can't have an annual income higher than around $20,000 for an individual or $41,000 for a family of four. You might be able to qualify with a higher income if you are pregnant, are under age 19 or have breast or cervical cancer.
Are health insurance rates going up in Ohio?
Health insurance is getting more expensive in Ohio, although rate increases aren't as high as in some other states. Bronze and Silver plans, which are the most popular plan tiers in the state, both cost $22 more per month in 2024 than they did in 2023.
Tier | 2023 | 2024 | Change (2023 vs. 2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bronze | $418 | $440 | 5% |
| Silver | $513 | $535 | 4% |
| Gold | $601 | $603 | 0% |
Monthly costs are for a 40-year-old.
All Obamacare health insurance plans give you important benefits
- Give you free preventive care (even if you haven't met the deductible)
- Help you avoid large medical debt if you have a major illness or injury.
- Don't charge you a higher rate if you have a health condition
Best short-term health insurance in Ohio
Anthem is the best short term health insurance company in Ohio because of its great customer satisfaction.
Company | Customer satisfaction | Complaints |
|---|---|---|
| Anthem | Low | |
| Medical Mutual of Ohio | Low | |
| Paramount | High |
Short-term health insurance can be a good choice If you need a plan for a few months, such as if you're between jobs. Otherwise, it might make more sense to buy a regular health insurance plan from HealthCare.gov. With a regular plan, you'll usually get better coverage and can qualify for income-based subsidies to make plans affordable.
- Costs: The cost of short-term health insurance is based on your medical history. That's different from regular health insurance which costs the same rate for everyone and won't deny you coverage because of a pre-existing condition.
- Policy length: Short-term health insurance plans in Ohio can last for a year but can't be continued after that. However, these plans don't usually give you the same coverage as a plan from HealthCare.gov.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best cheap health insurance in Ohio?
UnitedHealthcare is the best cheap health insurance company in Ohio. UHC has affordable rates, good coverage, and high customer satisfaction. The cheapest UHC plan in Ohio is $444 per month if you pay full price. That's $46 more than Molina, which has the absolute cheapest rates in the state, starting at $398 per month.
What is the average cost of health insurance in Ohio?
Health insurance costs an average of $535 per month in Ohio for a 40-year-old with a Silver plan. While average rates can be helpful, your rate will likely be different. Rates are based on your age, where you live, the amount of coverage you need, the size of your household, and the health insurance company you choose.
How do I get health insurance in Ohio?
To get health insurance in Ohio, you apply through the federal health insurance exchange at HealthCare.gov. After you create an account, you can search for the plans in your area using your ZIP code. Use the filter feature to find the plans that fit your needs, like coverage for any prescription medication you take.
Methodology
Health insurance rates and plan information for 2024 were compiled from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) government website. ValuePenguin used the public use files (PUFs) to calculate averages by plan tier, age, family size and county to understand the health insurance marketplace within Ohio. Plans and providers for which county-level data was included in the CMS Crosswalk file were used in this analysis; those excluded from this data set may not appear.
Short term health insurance information is for companies with the largest market share in the state, according to S&P Global Capital IQ. Customer satisfaction and complaints is based on the complaint index from NAIC (National Association of Insurance Commissioners).
Editorial note: The content of this article is based on the author's opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any of our network partners.