By Daryl Huff

Every company providing health coverage for Hawaii employers is raising rates higher than inflation as most Hawaii workers sign up for insurance during open enrollment.

Costs for HMSA, the company that insures most Hawaii workers, are going up much less than expected.

The Hawaii Insurance Division approved the new rates last week.

HMSA rate lowered after review

HMSA had originally proposed a nearly 20% rate increase for the small employer plans but later reduced the request to about 15%. Reviewers determined HMSA was being too pessimistic about its financial future.

“There was an overestimate of estimated losses for the year 2027,” Insurance Commissioner Scott Saiki said.

HMSA’s final rate for employers with fewer than 50 workers came down from 14.9% to 6.3%.

“HMSA has good news to share,” Dale Goya, HMSA vice president for account management and sales, said in a video statement. “This is proactive action that HMSA has taken to reduce rates based on a clear picture of expected costs for this small business population.”

Other insurers’ increases

Kaiser Permanente asked for and received an increase of 6%. HMAA’s increase is 16%. UHA’s is the largest at 19.5%.