Des Moines, Iowa employer health plans: what they cost and who gets paid
Updated plan year 2024, the most recent complete year
79 employers in Des Moines, Iowa filed health plans with 100 or more participants for plan year 2024, covering 79,573 participants. They reported $278M in insurance premiums and $6.5M in broker commissions and fees. Against 2023, premiums were up 2.6% and broker pay rose 31.0%.
Funding: 11 fully insured · 30 self-funded · 38 mixed. 68 of 79 plans pay at least some medical claims from the employer's own assets.
Largest employer health plans in Des Moines
Des Moines employers reporting the most insurance premium across every Schedule A contract, with what they paid brokers.
| Employer | Premiums | Broker pay | Participants | Top broker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Midamerican Energy Company | $88,084,077 | $78,856 | 4,602 | Aon |
| Ruan Transport Corporation | $44,179,699 | $649,414 | 4,949 | Lockton |
| Operating Engineers Local #234 Health and Welfare Trust Fund | $23,087,533 | — | 2,147 | — |
| Iowa Laborers Health and Welfare Fund | $21,526,872 | $75,657 | 2,602 | Segal |
| Iowa Association of Electric Cooperative | $21,224,179 | — | 4,261 | — |
| The Waldinger Corporation | $15,852,488 | $331,602 | 1,872 | Holmes Murphy |
| CDS Global, Inc. | $11,806,905 | $29,305 | 815 | Cgi-003837 |
| Jensen Construction Company | $7,985,642 | $107,021 | 467 | Fulcrum Benefits |
| The Weitz Group, LLC | $7,883,486 | $137,091 | 1,675 | Holmes Murphy |
| Central Iowa Sheet Metal Workers Health Fund - Joint Board of | $7,239,197 | — | 465 | — |
| Efco Corp | $5,383,172 | $11,599 | 675 | Truenorth Companies LC |
| Quick Supply Company | $4,473,631 | $162,801 | 370 | Holmes Murphy |
| Homesteaders Life Company | $3,371,027 | $83,113 | 280 | Holmes Murphy |
| Des Moines Iron Workers Welfare Fund | $3,061,860 | $6,290 | 436 | Wellmark Inc |
| Barton Solvents, Inc. | $3,057,306 | $29,665 | 173 | Gallagher |
| Excell Marketing, LC | $2,421,164 | $52,965 | 218 | Holmes Murphy |
| Visiting Nurse Services of Iowa | $2,192,648 | $62,345 | 292 | Holmes Murphy |
| Nyemaster, Goode, West, Hansell, & O'brien | $1,729,774 | — | 134 | — |
| Epi Power, LLC | $1,491,465 | $27,420 | 561 | Holmes Murphy |
| Cove Point LNG, LP | $1,421,294 | $4,197 | 219 | Empower Benefits Inc |
| Brown, Winick, Graves, Gross and Baskerville, P.L.C. | $119,221 | $77,151 | 124 | Holmes Murphy |
| RDG Planning & Design, Inc. | $87,776 | $17,473 | 357 | Holmes Murphy |
| LCS Community Employment LLC | $0 | $1,330,156 | 9,723 | Gallagher |
| Principal Financial Group, Inc. | $0 | — | 6,840 | — |
| Annett Holdings, Inc. | $0 | $220,917 | 5,863 | USI Insurance Services |
Source: DOL Form 5500 Schedule A, plan year 2024; employers are grouped by the sponsor's mailing city as filed. Self-funded employers show only stop-loss and ancillary premium.
Who gets paid
Commissions and fees reported by Des Moines employers, with the number of employer plans naming each broker.
| Broker | Commissions + fees | Plans |
|---|---|---|
| Gallagher | $1,660,499 | 10 |
| Holmes Murphy | $1,650,591 | 30 |
| Lockton | $955,567 | 6 |
| USI Insurance Services | $175,534 | 1 |
| AssuredPartners | $151,728 | 6 |
| The Hilb Group of Maryland LLC | $138,745 | 1 |
| Fulcrum Risk Solutions | $107,021 | 1 |
| Avant Specialty Benefits LLC | $99,418 | 14 |
| HUB International | $95,861 | 3 |
| Truenorth Companies, L.C. | $86,616 | 3 |
Largest medical carriers
Medical premium written for these employers.
Des Moines against Iowa and the U.S.
Medians over the same definitions on every BenefitsLedger page: commission rate on commission-paying, fully insured medical plans; broker pay per employer that disclosed any; medical premium per covered person.
| Des Moines | Iowa | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employer plans | 79 | 619 | 58,547 |
| Median commission rate | n/a | 1.6% | 3.8% |
| Middle half of rates | n/a | 1.1% – 2.4% | 2.7% – 5.0% |
| Median broker pay per employer | $33,509 | $38,968 | $72,628 |
| Medical premium per covered person | $13,105 | $10,958 | $7,274 |
| Plans reporting no commission | 8 | 54 | 933 |
Year over year. In plan year 2023, 75 Des Moines employers reported $271M in premiums and $4.9M in broker pay for 75,717 participants; in 2024 it was $278M and $6.5M for 79,573 participants (premiums +2.6%, broker pay +31.0%).
Source: DOL Form 5500 and Schedule A, plan years 2024 and 2023, employer health plans with 100 or more participants; built October 24, 2026. Medians need at least 10 rated plans to be shown for a city. Methodology.
How much do Des Moines employers pay health insurance brokers?
79 Des Moines employers reported $6,471,801 in broker commissions and fees on their 2024 Form 5500 filings, 70 of them disclosing at least some compensation. Too few fully insured medical plans in Des Moines reported premium to compute a stable commission rate; the Iowa median is 1.6% and the U.S. median is 3.8%. In dollars, the median Des Moines employer that disclosed broker pay reported $33,509.
Which Des Moines employers have the largest health plans?
By insurance premium reported for 2024, Midamerican Energy Company ($88M), Ruan Transport Corporation ($44M), Operating Engineers Local #234 Health and Welfare Trust Fund ($23M) lead. 25 Des Moines employers are listed on this page; every employer in the record has its own page.
Which brokers and carriers are paid the most in Des Moines?
By compensation reported by Des Moines employers, the largest brokers are Gallagher ($1.7M, 10 plans), Holmes Murphy ($1.7M, 30 plans), Lockton ($955,567, 6 plans). By medical premium, the largest carriers are Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa, Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Dakota, Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa.
Are Des Moines employer health plans self-funded or fully insured?
Of 79 Des Moines employer plans, 11 are fully insured, 30 are self-funded and 38 mix insured and self-funded coverage. Self-funded plans report only stop-loss and ancillary contracts on Schedule A, so their premium and broker pay understate total spend.
Other cities in Iowa
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