Oklahoma Health Insurance Consumer Guide

To qualify for health coverage through the Oklahoma Marketplace, you must: ⁴

• Live in Oklahoma
• Be lawfully present in the United States
• Not be incarcerated
• Not be enrolled in Medicare

Eligibility for financial assistance (premium subsidies and cost-sharing reductions) depends on your income and how it compares with the cost of the second-lowest-cost Silver plan in your area – which depends on your age and location. In addition, to qualify for financial assistance with your Marketplace plan you must:

• Not have access to affordable health coverage through your employer. If your employer offers coverage but you feel it’s too expensive, you can use our Employer Health Plan Affordability Calculator to see if you might qualify for premium subsidies in the Marketplace. 
• Not be eligible for Medicaid or CHIP.

In Oklahoma, open enrollment for individual and family health coverage runs from November 1 to January 15. ⁵ 

Your coverage will start on January 1 if you enroll before December 15. But if you apply between December 16 and January 15, your coverage will begin on February 1.⁵ 

Outside of open enrollment, a qualifying event is necessary to enroll or make changes to your coverage. If you have questions about open enrollment, you can learn more in our comprehensive guide to open enrollment. We also have a comprehensive guide to special enrollment periods.

To enroll in an ACA Marketplace plan in Oklahoma, you can: 

• Visit Healthcare.gov to access Oklahoma’s health insurance marketplace. Here you will find an online platform to shop, compare, and choose the best health plans. 
• Purchase individual and family health coverage with the help of an insurance agent or broker, a Navigator or certified application counselor, or an approved enhanced direct enrollment entity.⁶

You can reach HealthCare.gov’s call center by dialing 1-800-318-2596 (TTY: 1-855-889-4325). The call center is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except holidays.

Oklahoma uses the federally run exchange for individual market plans, so residents who buy their own health insurance enroll through HealthCare.gov. About nine out of ten eligible enrollees save money on 2023 premium payments amounting to an average savings of $577/month. After subsidies were applied, the average enrollee’s monthly cost was about $73/month.⁷

The Affordable Care Act provides income-based advance premium tax credits (subsidies) that offset your premium payments to help keep your expenses down. People with household incomes below 250%of the federal poverty level also qualify for cost-sharing reductions (CSR) that may reduce your deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses when you buy a Silver plan. In 2023, 96% of Oklahoma Marketplace enrollees were receiving CSR benefits.⁸ 

Between the premium subsidies and cost-sharing reductions, you may find that an ACA plan is the cheapest health insurance option for you.

Source: CMS.gov⁹

For 2024, seven insurers will offer health plans through the Oklahoma exchange, including newcomer Taro Health:¹⁰

• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma
• Oscar
• Medica
• CommunityCare
• UnitedHealthcare
• Ambetter (Centene/Celtic)
• Taro Health (new for 2024, with plans available in the Oklahoma City metro area)

In most of Oklahoma’s counties in 2023, at least one insurer was offering health plans. ¹¹

For premiums on their 2024 coverage, Oklahoma’s exchange insurers have proposed the following average rate changes, which are under review by federal regulators. (Oklahoma does not have its own effective rate review program.):¹⁰

Source: HealthCare.gov¹⁰

During the open enrollment period for 2023 coverage, over 203,157 people enrolled in private individual market plans through Oklahoma’s exchange.¹² This was a record high for the state, on the heels of previous record highs in 2022 and 2021. 

The surge in enrollment during these years was due in part to American Rescue Plan (ARP) provisions that made ACA’s premium subsidies more substantial. Under the ARP – now extended by the Inflation Reduction Act – subsidies are more significant and accessible through the end of 2025.¹²

Source: 2014,¹³ 2015, ¹⁴ 2016,¹⁵ 2017,¹⁶ 2018,¹⁷ 2019,¹⁸ 2020,¹⁹ 2021,²⁰ 2022,²¹ 2023,¹² 2024²²

HealthCare.gov
800-318-2596

State Exchange Profile: Oklahoma
The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation overview of Oklahoma’s progress toward creating a state health insurance exchange.

Oklahoma Insurance Department
Assists people insured by private health plans, Medicaid, or other plans in resolving problems pertaining to their health coverage; assists uninsured residents with access to care. (405) 521-2991 / Toll Free in OK: (800) 522-0071 / [email protected]