Madison, Wisconsin employer health plans: what they cost and who gets paid
Updated plan year 2024, the most recent complete year
125 employers in Madison, Wisconsin filed health plans with 100 or more participants for plan year 2024, covering 104,213 participants. They reported $29M in insurance premiums and $12M in broker commissions and fees. Against 2023, premiums were down 7.0% and broker pay rose 8.4%.
Funding: 26 fully insured · 29 self-funded · 70 mixed. 99 of 125 plans pay at least some medical claims from the employer's own assets.
Largest employer health plans in Madison
Madison employers reporting the most insurance premium across every Schedule A contract, with what they paid brokers.
| Employer | Premiums | Broker pay | Participants | Top broker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin Bankers Association Insurance Trust Fund | $6,566,236 | $881,447 | 3,283 | Wisconsin Bankers Association - Ebc |
| VP Holdings Corporation | $4,908,620 | $72,339 | 358 | — |
| CSM Companies, Inc. | $2,133,817 | $214,241 | 948 | Cottingham & Butler Insurance |
| State Bar of Wisconsin | $2,014,942 | $95,110 | 334 | Christine Nadolski |
| Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation | $1,824,889 | $710,216 | 5,401 | Watchtower Technologies Inc. |
| Nordic Consulting Partners, Inc. | $1,550,221 | $343,987 | 1,862 | Alliant Insurance Services |
| American Family Mutual Insurance Company, S.I. | $1,507,556 | $240,914 | 15,973 | Willis Towers Watson |
| Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. | $1,207,765 | — | 9,778 | — |
| Group Health Cooperative of South Central Wi | $782,022 | — | 646 | — |
| First Business Financial Services, Inc. | $722,766 | $144,632 | 345 | W B A-Employee Benefits Corp |
| Wisconsin Electrical Employees Health and Welfare Plan | $447,809 | $66,569 | 5,155 | William John Collins |
| M3 Insurance Solutions, Inc. | $444,953 | $94,228 | 415 | M3 Insurance |
| Strand Associates, Inc. | $437,845 | $193,395 | 477 | Benefit Works LLC |
| Gordon Flesch Company, Inc. | $415,695 | $76,220 | 677 | Watchtower Benefits LLC |
| Stevens Construction Corp. | $225,288 | $77,197 | 289 | M3 Insurance |
| Forward Service Corporation | $199,333 | $24,415 | 298 | Secura Consultants, LLC |
| Ultratec, Inc. | $196,503 | $137,538 | 587 | Watchtower Benefits, LLC |
| National Conference of Bar Examiners | $174,434 | $44,844 | 142 | Tricor, LLC |
| Kayser Automotive Group | $154,255 | $68,149 | 268 | Jennon M Caruth |
| Hiebing | $141,464 | $39,379 | 143 | Watchtower Benefits LLC |
| National Guardian Life Insurance Company | $128,249 | $109,116 | 303 | Watchtower Technologies |
| Mid-West Management, Inc. | $127,489 | $28,252 | 169 | Hausmann Group Inc |
| CMFG Life Insurance Company | $123,450 | $56,305 | 3,430 | Reuben Warner Associates, Inc. |
| Wegner CPAS LLP Welfare Benefit Plan | $121,385 | $38,637 | 173 | Ansay & Associates LLC |
| Oak Park Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, LLC | $117,753 | $92,472 | 445 | Oberloh, Jesse D |
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 Madison employers, with the number of employer plans naming each broker.
| Broker | Commissions + fees | Plans |
|---|---|---|
| Gallagher | $1,394,380 | 9 |
| Custom Benefits Program Inc | $781,979 | 1 |
| Wisconsin Bankers Association - Ebc | $572,708 | 1 |
| Willis Towers Watson | $446,015 | 2 |
| Cottingham & Butler | $394,891 | 7 |
| Hausmann Group Inc | $352,333 | 15 |
| Wba - Employee Benefit Corp | $216,468 | 2 |
| RSC Insurance Brokerage, Inc. | $206,854 | 1 |
| The Benefit Works LLC | $187,881 | 1 |
| Custom Benefit Programs Inc | $174,828 | 2 |
Largest medical carriers
Medical premium written for these employers.
Madison against Wisconsin 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.
| Madison | Wisconsin | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employer plans | 125 | 1,402 | 58,547 |
| Median commission rate | n/a | 2.1% | 3.8% |
| Middle half of rates | n/a | 1.6% – 3.1% | 2.7% – 5.0% |
| Median broker pay per employer | $51,123 | $42,793 | $72,628 |
| Medical premium per covered person | n/a | $7,247 | $7,274 |
| Plans reporting no commission | 0 | 4 | 933 |
Year over year. In plan year 2023, 125 Madison employers reported $31M in premiums and $11M in broker pay for 103,038 participants; in 2024 it was $29M and $12M for 104,213 participants (premiums −7.0%, broker pay +8.4%).
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 Madison employers pay health insurance brokers?
125 Madison employers reported $11,926,181 in broker commissions and fees on their 2024 Form 5500 filings, 120 of them disclosing at least some compensation. Too few fully insured medical plans in Madison reported premium to compute a stable commission rate; the Wisconsin median is 2.1% and the U.S. median is 3.8%. In dollars, the median Madison employer that disclosed broker pay reported $51,123.
Which Madison employers have the largest health plans?
By insurance premium reported for 2024, Wisconsin Bankers Association Insurance Trust Fund ($6.6M), VP Holdings Corporation ($4.9M), CSM Companies, Inc. ($2.1M) lead. 25 Madison employers are listed on this page; every employer in the record has its own page.
Which brokers and carriers are paid the most in Madison?
By compensation reported by Madison employers, the largest brokers are Gallagher ($1.4M, 9 plans), Custom Benefits Program Inc ($781,979, 1 plans), Wisconsin Bankers Association - Ebc ($572,708, 1 plans). By medical premium, the largest carriers are Wisconsin Physicians Service Insurance Corporation, Blue Care Network of Michigan, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida.
Are Madison employer health plans self-funded or fully insured?
Of 125 Madison employer plans, 26 are fully insured, 29 are self-funded and 70 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 Wisconsin
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