Columbus, Ohio employer health plans: what they cost and who gets paid
Updated plan year 2024, the most recent complete year
239 employers in Columbus, Ohio filed health plans with 100 or more participants for plan year 2024, covering 363,604 participants. They reported $84M in insurance premiums and $22M in broker commissions and fees. The median broker rate on commission-paying, fully insured medical plans was 2.6% of premium, against 3.5% across Ohio and 3.8% nationally. Against 2023, premiums were down 0.3% and broker pay fell 1.1%.
Funding: 65 fully insured · 89 self-funded · 85 mixed. 174 of 239 plans pay at least some medical claims from the employer's own assets.
Largest employer health plans in Columbus
Columbus employers reporting the most insurance premium across every Schedule A contract, with what they paid brokers.
| Employer | Premiums | Broker pay | Participants | Top broker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Safelite Group, Inc. | $6,154,340 | $743,565 | 16,066 | Marsh McLennan Agency |
| Ohio Education Association | $6,047,872 | $10,880 | 355 | USI Insurance Services |
| Geo Byers Sons Holding, Inc. | $4,842,092 | $59,080 | 244 | AssuredPartners |
| Huntington Bancshares Incorporated | $3,763,677 | $457,247 | 20,342 | Huntington Insurance Inc |
| Bricker Graydon, LLP | $3,549,190 | $148,619 | 343 | Horan Associates Inc. |
| Child Development Council of Franklin County Inc | $3,329,929 | $162,518 | 535 | McGohan Brabender Inc. |
| L Brands Service Company, LLC | $3,195,564 | $59,477 | 71,302 | Lockton |
| Maryhaven, Inc. | $2,954,144 | $71,368 | 248 | Hylant |
| Arc Industries, Incorporated, of Franklin County, Ohio | $2,816,971 | $80,659 | 227 | Willis Towers Watson |
| The Columbus Academy | $2,742,411 | $84,631 | 204 | Horan Associates, Inc. |
| Heinzerling Community | $2,653,614 | $90,664 | 307 | Gallagher |
| Columbus Oncology Associates, Inc. | $2,523,783 | $88,150 | 140 | Hylant |
| Midwest Physician Anesthesia Services Inc. | $2,418,045 | $104,113 | 105 | Hylant |
| YMCA of Central Ohio | $2,393,992 | $92,770 | 485 | McGohan Brabender, Inc. |
| Lifeline of Ohio Organ Procurement | $2,310,050 | — | 191 | HUB International |
| Central Ohio Medical Textiles dba Comtex | $2,187,226 | $84,783 | 232 | The HDH Group, Inc. |
| Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company | $2,109,935 | — | 24,573 | — |
| Lighthouse Behavioral Health Solutions, LLC | $1,747,774 | $157,482 | 126 | Bennie Insurance, LLC |
| Lindsay Automotive, Inc. | $1,600,871 | $91,256 | 254 | USI Insurance Services |
| Big Lots, Inc. | $1,543,925 | $160,029 | 10,023 | CBIZ |
| Resource International, Inc. | $1,525,299 | $67,348 | 160 | Mai Insurance Solutions LLC |
| Worthington Steel, Inc. | $1,358,989 | $143,231 | 3,073 | Alliant Insurance Services |
| The Columbus Distributing Company | $1,348,513 | $46,377 | 111 | McGohan Brabender Agency Inc |
| Worthington Enterprises, Inc | $1,324,851 | $141,258 | 3,108 | EPIC Insurance Brokers |
| Comresource, Inc. | $1,253,413 | $36,586 | 104 | DKG Insurance and Financial Service |
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 Columbus employers, with the number of employer plans naming each broker.
| Broker | Commissions + fees | Plans |
|---|---|---|
| Willis Towers Watson | $2,349,231 | 17 |
| USI Insurance Services | $2,298,609 | 41 |
| McGohan Brabender, Inc. | $1,542,174 | 28 |
| Huntington Insurance Inc | $1,483,862 | 14 |
| Aon | $1,162,685 | 9 |
| Marsh McLennan Agency | $1,039,645 | 10 |
| HUB International | $835,579 | 14 |
| AssuredPartners | $808,724 | 13 |
| Lockton | $780,196 | 11 |
| Hylant | $638,641 | 13 |
Largest medical carriers
Medical premium written for these employers.
Columbus against Ohio 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.
| Columbus | Ohio | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employer plans | 239 | 2,404 | 58,547 |
| Median commission rate | 2.6% (17 plans) | 3.5% | 3.8% |
| Middle half of rates | 1.9% – 3.0% | 2.5% – 4.7% | 2.7% – 5.0% |
| Median broker pay per employer | $63,554 | $56,081 | $72,628 |
| Medical premium per covered person | $13,812 | $11,620 | $7,274 |
| Plans reporting no commission | 3 | 17 | 933 |
Year over year. In plan year 2023, 233 Columbus employers reported $84M in premiums and $23M in broker pay for 328,825 participants; in 2024 it was $84M and $22M for 363,604 participants (premiums −0.3%, broker pay −1.1%).
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 Columbus employers pay health insurance brokers?
239 Columbus employers reported $22,443,691 in broker commissions and fees on their 2024 Form 5500 filings, 227 of them disclosing at least some compensation. Among 17 commission-paying, fully insured medical plans, the median broker rate was 2.6% of premium, 0.9 points below the Ohio median of 3.5% and 1.2 points below the U.S. median of 3.8%. In dollars, the median Columbus employer that disclosed broker pay reported $63,554.
Which Columbus employers have the largest health plans?
By insurance premium reported for 2024, Safelite Group, Inc. ($6.2M), Ohio Education Association ($6.0M), Geo Byers Sons Holding, Inc. ($4.8M) lead. 25 Columbus employers are listed on this page; every employer in the record has its own page.
Which brokers and carriers are paid the most in Columbus?
By compensation reported by Columbus employers, the largest brokers are Willis Towers Watson ($2.3M, 17 plans), USI Insurance Services ($2.3M, 41 plans), McGohan Brabender, Inc. ($1.5M, 28 plans). By medical premium, the largest carriers are Medical Mutual, Medical Mutual of Ohio, Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company.
Are Columbus employer health plans self-funded or fully insured?
Of 239 Columbus employer plans, 65 are fully insured, 89 are self-funded and 85 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 Ohio
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