Washington employer health plans: what they cost and who gets paid
Updated plan year 2024, the most recent complete year
1,423 Washington employers filed health plans with 100 or more participants for plan year 2024, covering 4,096,400 participants. They reported $533M in insurance premiums and $111M in broker commissions and fees. The median broker rate on commission-paying, fully insured medical plans was 1.3% of premium, 2.5 points below the national median of 3.8%.
Largest brokers
Reported commissions and fees, with the number of employer plans naming each.
Largest medical carriers
Medical premium written.
Cities in Washington
Every Washington city where 15 or more employers filed a health plan, by the sponsor's mailing address. Each page lists the city's largest plans, brokers and carriers.
| City | Employer plans | Premiums |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | 386 | $263M |
| Bellevue | 96 | $31M |
| Spokane | 79 | $23M |
| Vancouver | 77 | $55M |
| Tacoma | 61 | $4.5M |
| Yakima | 38 | $1.2M |
| Renton | 37 | $4.1M |
| Kent | 36 | $1.8M |
| Everett | 35 | $2.6M |
| Redmond | 28 | $1.5M |
| Bellingham | 27 | $262,408 |
| Kirkland | 26 | $2.7M |
| Mukilteo | 23 | $41M |
| Spokane Valley | 20 | $2.5M |
| Puyallup | 19 | $383,586 |
| Auburn | 18 | $937,263 |
| Tukwila | 18 | $3.0M |
| Bothell | 17 | $15M |
| Olympia | 17 | $8.5M |
| Longview | 16 | $3.1M |
Largest employer plans
By health plan participants.
Highest broker pay
Employers reporting the most broker commissions and fees.
Highest commission rates
Fully insured medical plans with at least $500,000 in premium, ranked by broker compensation as a share of premium.
| Employer | City | Rate | Broker pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Haakon Industries, Inc. | Cheney | 5.0% | $85,780 |
| Nelson Irrigation Corporation | Walla Walla | 1.3% | $9,327 |
| Medical Management International, Inc. | Vancouver | 0.0% | $15,724 |
| T-Mobile Puerto Rico, LLC | Bellevue | 0.0% | $0 |
| Costco Wholesale Corporation | Issaquah | 0.0% | $0 |
| Coffman Engineers Incorporated | Seattle | 0.0% | $0 |
| Omnitrade Health Trust | Mukilteo | 0.0% | $0 |
Source: DOL Form 5500 and Schedule A, plan year 2024; built October 24, 2026. Methodology.
What do Washington employers pay health insurance brokers?
Across 3 fully insured medical plans in plan year 2024, among commission-paying fully insured medical plans, the median broker compensation for Washington employers was 1.3% of premium (middle half 0.6% to 3.1%), against a national median of 3.8%. In dollars, the median employer that disclosed broker pay reported $40,089.
Which Washington employers paid the most in broker commissions?
The Boeing Co. and Consolidated Subsidiaries reported the most in 2024, $5,880,543, followed by Starbucks Corporation ($3.3M) and Amazon.Com Services, LLC ($3.2M).
Which brokers and carriers dominate Washington?
By reported compensation, the largest brokers are USI Insurance Services, Mercer, Gallagher. By medical premium, the largest carriers are Regence Bluecross Blueshield of Oregon, Hawaii Medical Service Association, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington.
Which Washington cities have the most employer health plans?
Seattle (386 employer plans, $263M in premiums); Bellevue (96 employer plans, $31M in premiums); Spokane (79 employer plans, $23M in premiums); Vancouver (77 employer plans, $55M in premiums); Tacoma (61 employer plans, $4.5M in premiums). 20 Washington cities with 15 or more employer plans have their own page listing the largest plans, brokers and carriers.
Is your company on this page? Get its Form 5500 read next to the Washington medians.
Tell us the company and a specialist writes up what the public Form 5500 record shows for it, if it files one: broker pay against the medians above, fee disclosure and filing timeliness, in a form you can forward to your CFO or counsel. Tick the box if you also want a 15-minute walkthrough call.
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