Minnesota health insurance, explained
MNsure vs. private health insurance in Minnesota
This is the question we get most, and the answer surprises people: in Minnesota, a MNsure plan is private insurance. MNsure does not sell its own plans; it is the state's marketplace where the same private carriers list the same plans they sell directly, at the same price. What MNsure adds is the help — tax credits, MinnesotaCare and Medical Assistance are applied there and nowhere else. What going straight to a carrier adds is a handful of plans they choose not to list on the marketplace — and it is still written through us, at the same price. Which door to use comes down to your income.
Written by Pat Bernauer, licensed Minnesota insurance agent (NPN 32897) · Reviewed by Spencer Bernauer (NPN 18100632) · Updated
Same plan, same price
A plan offered both on MNsure and directly from the carrier has to cost the same in both places. The network, the deductible, the drug list and the doctors are identical. Enrolling through MNsure does not put you in a different tier of service with the carrier; your card looks the same.
What only MNsure can do
Apply a premium tax credit — for 2026 coverage, available to households up to $62,600 for one person and $128,600 for four, though those are ceilings: premiums are age-rated, so a younger person's credit often runs out well before the line. Enroll you in MinnesotaCare or Medical Assistance if your income qualifies, any month of the year. And, for households that qualify, lower the deductible and copays on silver plans through cost-sharing reductions.
What going straight to the carrier can do
Some carriers sell plans off the marketplace that they do not list on it — sometimes with a different network design or a plan shape that suits a particular household. If your income is above the credit cap, these belong in the comparison, and nothing is lost by looking: the enrollment windows are the same and the special-enrollment rules are the same. It is still us either way. We are appointed with these carriers, so an off-marketplace plan is written through this office exactly as a MNsure plan is — you are not going around us to get one, and it costs you nothing to have us do it.
Which one, in one sentence
Under the tax-credit line, MNsure, because that is where the money is. Over it, compare both and pick the plan, not the door. Either way the same two people at this office do the comparing, and there is no charge.
Questions we get about this
Is MNsure government insurance?
No. MNsure is Minnesota’s marketplace — a place to shop and to have financial help applied. The plans sold there are from private carriers. Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare, which you also apply for through MNsure, are public programs.
Are MNsure plans cheaper than going straight to the carrier?
The same plan costs the same either way, and it costs the same again if we write it for you — a broker is paid by the carrier, not by you. MNsure is cheaper only if you qualify for help, in which case it can be much cheaper, and it is the only place that help exists.
Can a broker help me with MNsure, or only with private plans?
Both. We are certified MNsure brokers and independent, so we can enroll you through MNsure or directly with a carrier, whichever is right, without a fee.
Do the enrollment dates differ?
No. Open enrollment (November 1 to January 15) and the 60-day special enrollment rules apply to individual plans on and off MNsure alike. Only Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare enroll year-round.
Ask us the version that is about you.
Pat or Spencer reads every request personally. Certified MNsure brokers, independent since 1986, and there is no charge for the conversation.