Connecticut health insurance Marketplace guide

To qualify for Marketplace coverage in Connecticut, you must:¹⁰

• Live in Connecticut
• Be a U.S. citizen, national, or lawfully present in the U.S.
• Not be incarcerated
• Not be enrolled in Medicare

Although that makes most people in Connecticut eligible to use the Marketplace, eligibility for financial assistance (premium subsidies and cost-sharing reductions) also depends on income. In addition, to be eligible for financial assistance through Access Health CT, you must:

• Not be eligible for employer-sponsored coverage that’s considered affordable and provides minimum value.
• Not be eligible for HUSKY (Medicaid/CHIP)
• Not be eligible for premium-free Medicare Part A.¹¹
• If married, file a joint tax return with your spouse¹² (with very limited exceptions)¹³
• Not be able to be claimed by someone else as a tax dependent.¹²

Starting in the fall of 2026, for coverage effective in 2027, open enrollment will end no later than December 31, and all plans selected during open enrollment will take effect January 1.

Outside of open enrollment, you generally need a qualifying life event to enroll or switch policies (examples of qualifying life events are involuntarily losing other coverage, getting married, or moving to an area where different health plans are available). And Connecticut is among several states where pregnancy is considered a qualifying event.¹⁴

The qualifying event will trigger a special enrollment period (SEP) that will allow you to sign up for coverage or switch to a different plan. 

But some people can sign up without a qualifying life event. For example:

Native Americans can enroll year-round.¹⁵

People eligible for the Covered Connecticut program can enroll anytime.¹⁶

Anyone eligible for HUSKY (Medicaid/CHIP) in Connecticut can also enroll year-round.

There are multiple ways to enroll in an ACA Marketplace plan in Connecticut:¹⁷

• Online: Go to AccessHealthCT.com to create an account and apply. 
• Phone: Contact the Call Center at 855-805-4325. 
• Get help from a navigator, certified application counselor, or agent/broker certified with Access Health CT. These individuals can provide help over the phone, in-person, or online.

You can find affordable individual and family health plans in Connecticut through AccessHealthCT.com, the state’s ACA exchange.

Access Health CT is where you can:

• Shop, compare, and sign up for health and dental plans
• Qualify for financial help to lower your costs
• Enroll in HUSKY (Medicaid/CHIP) or the Covered Connecticut Program if eligible

Almost eighty percent of Access Health CT enrollees receive subsidies, saving an average of $952 each month on their 2026 premiums¹ (this average only includes federal subsidy amounts; Connecticut’s state-funded subsidies are provided in addition to federal subsidies). These federal subsidies are called Advance Premium Tax Credits (APTC). Subsidy-eligible Connecticut Marketplace enrollees pay an average of $100/month in after-subsidy premiums in 2026¹ (again, state subsidies are in addition to federal subsidies, so they bring the actual net premium further down).

If your income is no more than 250% of the federal poverty level, you may qualify for cost-sharing reductions (CSR) to lower your deductibles and out-of-pocket costs.¹⁸

If you qualify for Covered Connecticut, the state will cover your portion of the monthly premiums and any expenses related to cost-sharing, such as your deductibles, copays, and co-insurance.

Covered Connecticut is available to enrollees with household income up to 175% of the poverty level (they must also not be eligible for Medicaid, which is available up to 138% of the poverty level).

Under the Covered Connecticut program, eligible enrollees must select a silver plan through Access Health CT and accept all of the federal subsidies available to them. Covered Connecticut then pays any remaining premiums and cost-sharing, resulting in a plan that has a $0 premium and $0 cost-sharing.¹⁹

As explained below, Connecticut is funding additional state subsidies for 2026, designed to mitigate some of the impact of the expiration of federal subsidy enhancements at the end of 2025.⁸

Source: CMS.gov¹

For 2027 coverage, only two insurers will offer individual/family coverage through Access Health CT:

• Anthem
• ConnectiCare Benefits

Three insurance companies offer individual/family coverage through the Connecticut exchange in 2026, but ConnectiCare Insurance Company (which is a separate entity from ConnectiCare Benefits)²⁰ is switching to off-exchange-only for 2027, as opposed to on-exchange-only in 2026.²¹

ConnectiCare Insurance Company has 3,719 enrollees in 2026, all of whom will need to select new coverage for 2027. They will have the option to switch to one of ConnectiCare Insurance Company’s new off-exchange plans, but subsidies are not available with off-exchange coverage.²¹

For 2027, the following average rate increases have been proposed by the insurers that offer individual/family health coverage via Access Health CT,²¹ amounting to an overall average rate increase of 16.2% before subsidies are applied.²²

Source: Connecticut Insurance Department²¹

The proposed rate changes apply to full price premiums, before subsidies are applied. Most enrollees receive subsidies, but those subsidies are no longer available to anyone with a household income over 400% of the federal poverty level. And the subsidies aren’t covering as much of the premium for everyone else, due to the failure of Congress to extend the federal subsidy enhancements that expired at the end of 2025.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont announced in December 2025, soon after the U.S. Senate failed to pass a bill that would have extended the subsidy enhancements, that Connecticut would use $70 million to offset some of the $295 million reduction in federal subsidies for 2026. This helped to keep 2026 net premiums in Connecticut more affordable than they would otherwise have been.⁶

Access Health CT announced the details of the new state subsidies in early January, 2026. For 2026 coverage, the new state subsidy program:⁸

• fully covers the reduction in federal subsidies for enrollees with household income between 100% and 200% of FPL (who aren’t enrolled in Covered Connecticut).
• covers 50% of the reduction in federal subsidies for enrollees with household income between 400% and 500% of FPL (the expiration of the federal subsidy enhancements resulted in these enrollees losing all of their federal subsidies).

But the rates that insurers filed for 2027 are based on the assumption that Connecticut’s additional state subsidy program will not be extended into 2027. The insurers noted that if it is, the rates will be adjusted to account for that.²²

For perspective, here’s an overview of how average unsubsidized premiums have changed in Connecticut’s individual/family market over the years:

• 2015: Average decrease of 1%.²³
• 2016: Average increase of 3.5%.²⁴
• 2017: Average increase of 24.8%.²⁵
• 2018: Average increase of 28.4%.²⁶
• 2019: Average insurance of 2.72%.²⁷
• 2020: Average increase of 3.65%.²⁸
• 2021: Average increase of 0.01%.²⁹
• 2022: Average increase of 5.6%.³⁰
• 2023: Average increase of 12.9%.³¹
• 2024: Average increase of 9.4%³²
• 2025: Average increase of 5.9%³³
• 2026: Average increase of 16.8%⁴

A record-high of more than 156,745 people enrolled in private plans through the Connecticut exchange during the open enrollment period for 2026 coverage.¹

The enrollment growth in Connecticut was fairly unique, as most states saw a decrease in enrollment in 2026 due to the expiration of federal subsidy enhancements. 

Access Health CT credits the record high enrollment to multiple factors, including increased outreach, encouraging enrollees to work with brokers, and the additional state-funded subsidies that offset some of the reduction in federal subsidies.³⁴

Source: 2014,³⁵ 2015,³⁶ 2016,³⁷ 2017,³⁸ 2018,³⁹ 2019,⁴⁰ 2020,⁴¹ 2021,⁴² 2022,⁴³ 2023,⁴⁴ 2024,⁴⁵ 2025⁴⁶ 2026¹

Access Health CT
This website is used by Connecticut residents to sign up for private individual market or small-group coverage and income-based Medicaid/CHIP coverage.

Connecticut CHOICES Program
Offers free enrollment counseling and assistance for older adults, people with disabilities, and their caregivers.

Connecticut Insurance Department
Regulates and licenses the state’s health insurance companies, brokers, and agents. They also address inquiries and complaints from consumers about entities under their regulation.

Husky Healthcare
Provides health coverage for Connecticut residents with lower and moderate incomes.

Medicare Rights Center
This nationwide service offers help and information to Medicare beneficiaries and their caregivers.