Columbia, Maryland employer health plans: what they cost and who gets paid
Updated plan year 2024, the most recent complete year
88 employers in Columbia, Maryland filed health plans with 100 or more participants for plan year 2024, covering 76,573 participants. They reported $122M in insurance premiums and $10.0M in broker commissions and fees. Against 2023, premiums were up 1903.9% and broker pay rose 11.2%.
Funding: 17 fully insured · 31 self-funded · 40 mixed. 71 of 88 plans pay at least some medical claims from the employer's own assets.
Largest employer health plans in Columbia
Columbia employers reporting the most insurance premium across every Schedule A contract, with what they paid brokers.
| Employer | Premiums | Broker pay | Participants | Top broker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vna, Inc. | $112,281,171 | $42,360 | 1,174 | Meltzer Group |
| The Board of Trustees Plumbers & Pipefitters Medical Fund | $3,567,568 | — | 1,660 | — |
| Digiflight, Inc . | $1,756,985 | $98,580 | 255 | The Hilb Group of Maryland LLC |
| Planned Systems International, Inc. | $943,985 | $249,341 | 1,435 | The Meltzer Group Inc |
| Authority Brands, Inc. | $865,844 | $295,885 | 1,201 | Eoi Service Company Inc |
| CB Flooring, LLC | $757,377 | $101,459 | 120 | The Hilb Group of Maryland LLC |
| Stone and Marble Masons of Metro Washing FD | $633,801 | — | 269 | — |
| Metropolitan DC Paving Industry Employee Health & Welfare Fund | $295,767 | — | 667 | Bolton Partners |
| Rohde & Schwarz USA, Inc. | $111,894 | $21,538 | 740 | CBIZ |
| Clarity Innovations, LLC | $105,041 | $93,527 | 312 | The Meltzer Group Inc |
| Jensen Hughes, Inc. | $92,841 | $128,605 | 835 | Alliant Insurance Services |
| Science & Engineering Services, Inc. | $72,199 | $178,747 | 624 | Meltzer Group Inc |
| Teamsters Local 922 - Employers Health Trust | $32,419 | — | 509 | — |
| Harkins Builders, Inc. | $28,794 | $84,240 | 249 | Corporate Synergies |
| Medstar Health, Inc. | $0 | $275,348 | 7,959 | Meltzer Group Inc |
| Medstar Health, Inc. | $0 | $228,750 | 7,599 | Meltzer Group Inc (jemm Group) |
| Medstar Health, Inc. | $0 | $411,613 | 7,261 | Meltzer Group |
| Medstar Georgetown Medical Center, Inc. | $0 | $106,063 | 3,986 | Meltzer Group Inc (jemm Group) |
| Amergis Healthcare Staffing, Inc Inc | $0 | $427,594 | 2,801 | Kelly & Associates Insurance Group |
| W.R. Grace & Co. | $0 | $401,685 | 2,596 | Willis Towers Watson |
| Baywood Hotels, Inc. | $0 | $77,293 | 2,541 | Marsh McLennan Agency |
| Maxim Healthcare Services, Inc. | $0 | $349,702 | 2,198 | Kelly & Associates Insurance Group |
| Structural Group, Inc. | $0 | $372,200 | 2,117 | Gis Benefits Inc |
| Plumbers and Steamfitters Local #486 Medical Fund | $0 | $60,523 | 1,949 | Bolton Partners, Inc. |
| Construction Workers' Trust Fund Board of Directors | $0 | $6,641 | 1,549 | Bolton Partners' Health Plan Consul |
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 Columbia employers, with the number of employer plans naming each broker.
| Broker | Commissions + fees | Plans |
|---|---|---|
| The Meltzer Group Inc | $1,395,662 | 14 |
| Kelly & Associates Insurance Group | $758,286 | 6 |
| The Hilb Group of Maryland LLC | $582,770 | 9 |
| Willis Towers Watson | $464,195 | 3 |
| The L Warner Companies Inc | $461,481 | 5 |
| Silberstein Insurance Group, LLC | $444,072 | 7 |
| Mercer | $341,842 | 4 |
| Lockton | $275,320 | 2 |
| Riggs Counselman Michaels & Downes | $268,728 | 4 |
| Capitol Benefits, LLC | $255,863 | 1 |
Largest medical carriers
Medical premium written for these employers.
Columbia 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.
| Columbia | Maryland | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employer plans | 88 | 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 | $91,375 | $77,915 | $72,628 |
| Medical premium per covered person | n/a | $7,401 | $7,274 |
| Plans reporting no commission | 4 | 12 | 933 |
Year over year. In plan year 2023, 92 Columbia employers reported $6.1M in premiums and $9.0M in broker pay for 78,212 participants; in 2024 it was $122M and $10.0M for 76,573 participants (premiums +1903.9%, broker pay +11.2%).
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 Columbia employers pay health insurance brokers?
88 Columbia employers reported $9,984,157 in broker commissions and fees on their 2024 Form 5500 filings, 84 of them disclosing at least some compensation. Too few fully insured medical plans in Columbia 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 Columbia employer that disclosed broker pay reported $91,375.
Which Columbia employers have the largest health plans?
By insurance premium reported for 2024, Vna, Inc. ($112M), The Board of Trustees Plumbers & Pipefitters Medical Fund ($3.6M), Digiflight, Inc . ($1.8M) lead. 25 Columbia employers are listed on this page; every employer in the record has its own page.
Which brokers and carriers are paid the most in Columbia?
By compensation reported by Columbia employers, the largest brokers are The Meltzer Group Inc ($1.4M, 14 plans), Kelly & Associates Insurance Group ($758,286, 6 plans), The Hilb Group of Maryland LLC ($582,770, 9 plans). By medical premium, the largest carriers are Carefirst of Maryland, Inc., Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company.
Are Columbia employer health plans self-funded or fully insured?
Of 88 Columbia employer plans, 17 are fully insured, 31 are self-funded and 40 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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