Health insurance in Colorado: Connect for Health Colorado, state help and Medicaid

Connect for Health Colorado dates for 2027 coverage

Outside Open Enrollment you need a qualifying life event, like losing other coverage, getting married or moving. See special enrollment periods. Cigna stops selling individual plans in Colorado for 2027, and Colorado Access joins the individual market, for 7 insurers in all.

What's different in Colorado

• Colorado Premium Assistance: state money added automatically on top of federal tax credits for qualifying households below 400% of the federal poverty level. It equals $80 for the first household member and $29 for each other member who pays a premium, or your remaining premium after tax credits if that's smaller. In 2026 it helped more than 176,000 customers, about $10.6 million a month. A 2026 state law (SB26-178) continues it for 2027, and the Division of Insurance estimates people getting financial help will pay about $20 a month more on average in 2027 than in 2026.
• Colorado Option: every insurer that sells health insurance in the state must offer these standardized plans, with a set of lower, fixed costs, in Gold, Silver and Bronze. They're sold to people who buy their own coverage and to employers with fewer than 50 employees, they include $0 primary care and mental health visits, and the state requires insurers to lower premiums on them.
• Reinsurance: a state program that reimburses insurers for part of their high-cost claims, which lowers premiums. The Division of Insurance says it will save Coloradans nearly $470 million on 2027 premiums. It's funded partly through a federal Section 1332 waiver, and in June 2026 the Division told federal officials it plans to extend that waiver to 2032.
• 2027 rates: the Division of Insurance approved an average 10% increase for individual plans for 2027 (from 5.9% to 15.5% depending on the region), down from the 11% insurers requested in July 2026. Your own price depends on age, ZIP code, income and the plan you pick.

Enhanced federal premium tax credits ended December 31, 2025, so federal help is smaller than it was from 2021 to 2025 and stops above 400% of the poverty level. See premium tax credit.

OmniSalud and SilverEnhanced Savings

OmniSalud is for Coloradans who can't get Health First Colorado, CHP+ or a Connect for Health Colorado plan because of immigration status. Its SilverEnhanced Savings plans have limited spots. They're funded by the state's Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise, and insurers pay 73% of covered out-of-pocket costs.

Health First Colorado (Medicaid) and 2027 changes

Health First Colorado is the state's Medicaid program; HCPF also runs Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+). When you apply for financial help through Connect for Health Colorado, it checks Health First Colorado eligibility first.

Starting January 1, 2027, federal rules add work requirements and six-month renewals for some members. The state Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF) says about 377,000 members could be affected: adults ages 19 to 64 earning up to 133% of the federal poverty level (up to $20,815 a year for one person or $42,760 for a family of four). Those members will need to report at least 80 hours a month of work, volunteering or school, or at least $580 in monthly earnings, unless they qualify for an exemption. Members who don't comply or report an exemption will lose coverage.

Losing Health First Colorado can qualify you to enroll in a Connect for Health Colorado plan outside Open Enrollment. See Medicaid income limits.

How to enroll, and where Gabriel fits

1. Gather your details: everyone in your household, expected 2027 income, current coverage, and your doctors and prescriptions.
2. Apply online at connectforhealthco.com, by phone at 855-752-6749 (TTY 855-695-5935), Monday to Friday, 8 am to 5 pm, or with free help from a certified assister or licensed agent.
3. Compare plans on the premium after financial help, the deductible, the out-of-pocket maximum and the network. Colorado Option plans make side-by-side comparisons easier.
4. Pick by December 15 for January 1 coverage, then pay the first premium.

Gabriel can quote Marketplace plans for your ZIP code and household, show the price after any tax credit, and open your own application with a licensed agent in most states. You choose the plan and finish the application. Separate from insurance, Gabriel Core is $49 per adult a month (kids under 18 included) with member prices close to cost on lab tests, supplements, prescriptions and bioregulators, plus unlimited virtual urgent care and virtual primary care.

Gabriel is not an insurer. Health insurance quotes and enrollment are handled by Gabriel Labs, Gabriel's separately licensed insurance agency. Gabriel membership is not health insurance, doesn't count as minimum essential coverage, and doesn't replace a health plan's protection against large medical bills.