Bethesda, Maryland employer health plans: what they cost and who gets paid
Updated plan year 2024, the most recent complete year
86 employers in Bethesda, Maryland filed health plans with 100 or more participants for plan year 2024, covering 273,344 participants. They reported $135M in insurance premiums and $13M in broker commissions and fees. Against 2023, premiums were up 0.6% and broker pay rose 10.9%.
Funding: 17 fully insured · 27 self-funded · 42 mixed. 69 of 86 plans pay at least some medical claims from the employer's own assets.
Largest employer health plans in Bethesda
Bethesda employers reporting the most insurance premium across every Schedule A contract, with what they paid brokers.
| Employer | Premiums | Broker pay | Participants | Top broker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lockheed Martin Corporation | $127,594,931 | $2,761,455 | 112,559 | Marsh McLennan Agency |
| United Educators Management Company | $2,889,224 | $12,185 | 211 | CBIZ |
| The National Center for Children and Families | $2,076,283 | $280,954 | 252 | Alliant Insurance Services |
| Aledade, Inc. | $1,618,818 | $440,627 | 1,411 | USI Insurance Services |
| Precision Medicine Group, LLC | $189,695 | $287,317 | 2,301 | The Meltzer Group Inc |
| Clark Construction Group, LLC | $146,925 | $89,000 | 3,795 | Alliant Insurance Services |
| Marriott International, Inc. | $0 | $601,391 | 81,964 | Aon |
| Host International, Inc. | $0 | $546,365 | 14,903 | Willis Towers Watson |
| Marriott International, Inc. | $0 | — | 10,265 | — |
| Retail Services & Systems, Inc. | $0 | $582,127 | 6,595 | Alliant Insurance Services |
| Liquidity Services Inc | $0 | — | 4,499 | — |
| Red Coats, Inc. | $0 | $216,972 | 2,599 | USI Insurance Services |
| United States Enrichment Corporation | $0 | $7,257 | 2,354 | Willis Towers Watson |
| Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine | $0 | $81,276 | 2,200 | Mercer |
| Suburban Hospital | $0 | $36,174 | 1,795 | Cornerstone Financial LLP |
| The Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics | $0 | $180,634 | 1,561 | Marsh McLennan Agency |
| Meridian Senior Living | $0 | $276,212 | 1,480 | USI Insurance Services |
| B. F. Saul Company and Subsidiaries | $0 | $265,823 | 1,438 | OneDigital |
| Enviva Management Company, LLC | $0 | $40,916 | 1,304 | Avant Speciality Benefits, LLC |
| Walker & Dunlop LLC | $0 | $314,667 | 1,292 | OneDigital |
| Global Communities, Inc. | $0 | $72,947 | 1,187 | Digital Benefit Advisors |
| Caremetx, LLC | $0 | $83,807 | 956 | The Meltzer Group Inc |
| Dai Esop, Inc. | $0 | $27,602 | 870 | Gallagher |
| Cystic Fibrosis Foundation | $0 | $225,033 | 740 | Meltzer Group, Inc. |
| Elite Spice, Inc. | $0 | $61,984 | 725 | Strateben Inc |
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 Bethesda employers, with the number of employer plans naming each broker.
| Broker | Commissions + fees | Plans |
|---|---|---|
| Marsh McLennan Agency | $1,412,617 | 4 |
| USI Insurance Services | $1,198,177 | 6 |
| OneDigital | $1,160,404 | 8 |
| The Meltzer Group Inc | $1,146,409 | 16 |
| Mercer | $1,083,383 | 3 |
| Alliant Insurance Services | $919,696 | 5 |
| Willis Towers Watson | $717,413 | 5 |
| Lockton | $591,531 | 7 |
| Aon | $585,616 | 3 |
| HUB International | $461,661 | 2 |
Largest medical carriers
Medical premium written for these employers.
Bethesda against Maryland 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.
| Bethesda | Maryland | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employer plans | 86 | 1,084 | 58,547 |
| Median commission rate | n/a | 5.5% | 3.8% |
| Middle half of rates | n/a | 3.9% – 8.1% | 2.7% – 5.0% |
| Median broker pay per employer | $90,691 | $77,915 | $72,628 |
| Medical premium per covered person | n/a | $7,401 | $7,274 |
| Plans reporting no commission | 1 | 12 | 933 |
Year over year. In plan year 2023, 86 Bethesda employers reported $134M in premiums and $12M in broker pay for 251,017 participants; in 2024 it was $135M and $13M for 273,344 participants (premiums +0.6%, broker pay +10.9%).
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 Bethesda employers pay health insurance brokers?
86 Bethesda employers reported $13,119,811 in broker commissions and fees on their 2024 Form 5500 filings, 79 of them disclosing at least some compensation. Too few fully insured medical plans in Bethesda reported premium to compute a stable commission rate; the Maryland median is 5.5% and the U.S. median is 3.8%. In dollars, the median Bethesda employer that disclosed broker pay reported $90,691.
Which Bethesda employers have the largest health plans?
By insurance premium reported for 2024, Lockheed Martin Corporation ($128M), United Educators Management Company ($2.9M), The National Center for Children and Families ($2.1M) lead. 25 Bethesda employers are listed on this page; every employer in the record has its own page.
Which brokers and carriers are paid the most in Bethesda?
By compensation reported by Bethesda employers, the largest brokers are Marsh McLennan Agency ($1.4M, 4 plans), USI Insurance Services ($1.2M, 6 plans), OneDigital ($1.2M, 8 plans). By medical premium, the largest carriers are Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company, Unitedhealthcare Insurance Company, Group Hospitalization Medical Services, Inc..
Are Bethesda employer health plans self-funded or fully insured?
Of 86 Bethesda employer plans, 17 are fully insured, 27 are self-funded and 42 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 Maryland
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