For a 40-year-old buying individual coverage without financial assistance, one CareSource bronze plan available across Richmond and Columbia counties will cost $666.60 a month in 2027. That is $154.35 more than the rate for a 40-year-old under the same base plan ID in 2026. Its individual deductible also rises, from $10,600 to $12,000.
Another bronze plan, offered by Alliant in Columbia County for 2027, costs $634.48 a month under the same age and tobacco assumptions. Its deductible falls from $8,000 to $7,500, even as its out-of-pocket limit rises.
Those examples, drawn from Georgia Access's published rate, plan and service-area files, show why the enrollment decision cannot be reduced to a single percentage increase. The monthly bill matters. So does what happens when someone needs care.
Open enrollment began November 1. Georgia Access sets December 15 as the deadline to enroll for January 1, 2027 coverage. Enrollment continues through January 15 for coverage beginning February 1.
Three local examples, with the assumptions stated
The figures below describe one 40-year-old adult who does not use tobacco, using the full monthly rate before tax credits or other assistance. Both counties are in Georgia's Rating Area 5. The benefit figures are for the standard on-exchange variant, with individual in-network limits, not a family limit or an enhanced cost-sharing-reduction variant.
These are illustrations, not a ranking or a complete list of available choices.
- CareSource Low Premium Bronze HMO 12000 $50, plan 60224GA0010025-01: $666.60 a month, a $12,000 deductible and a $12,000 out-of-pocket limit. The state lists its service area across both Richmond and Columbia counties. The insurer's 2027 benefits summary confirms those benefit limits.
- Alliant Bronze HMO $7500 $35, plan 83761GA0110054-01: $634.48 a month, a $7,500 deductible and a $12,000 out-of-pocket limit. Its 2027 service area includes Columbia County, not Richmond. The 2027 benefits summary also lists a $35 in-network primary-care copay with the deductible waived.
- Ambetter Streamlined Silver HMO $4700 $20, plan 70893GA0010045-01: $762.67 a month, a $4,700 deductible and an $11,300 out-of-pocket limit, available across both counties. Its 2027 benefits summary lists $20 in-network primary-care and $60 specialist copays without first meeting the deductible.
The lower monthly bill is not automatically the lower cost over a year. These examples use the same age and rating area; benefits and service areas differ.
The same plan ID can carry different terms
Holding age at 40 in both years, the CareSource bronze example rises from $512.25 to $666.60 per month, an increase of about 30.1 percent. That is $1,852.20 more in annual premiums before assistance. Its deductible and out-of-pocket limit both rise by $1,400.
For the Alliant bronze example in Columbia County, the monthly rate rises from $525.70 to $634.48, about 20.7 percent. The deductible falls by $500, while the individual out-of-pocket limit rises from $10,150 to $12,000.
Those are comparisons of the published rates for the same age and plan identifiers, not predictions of an existing customer's renewal bill. A person's age, financial assistance, selected benefit variant and other circumstances can change. A continuing identifier also does not establish that the network or every benefit is unchanged.
The Ambetter silver example has no matching 2026 base-plan entry in the local comparison, so this report does not assign it a year-over-year increase.
Read the drug benefit before counting a bargain
The three plans handle prescription costs differently.
The CareSource bronze summary lists preferred generic drugs at $0 after the deductible. Alliant's bronze summary lists a $10 generic-drug copay with the deductible waived. Ambetter's silver summary lists a $3 preferred-generic retail copay and a $15 generic retail copay, also without the deductible.
Those descriptions are not promises that any particular medicine will be covered. A drug must fit the plan's formulary and applicable rules. The relevant sources are the insurers' actual 2027 lists: CareSource, Alliant SoloCare and Ambetter.
Check the medicine's exact name and formulation, its tier, pharmacy rules and any prior-authorization or quantity restrictions. A $0 amount followed by “after deductible” is a different benefit from a copay available before the deductible.
A county service area is not a doctor's network
All three examples are HMOs. Being eligible to buy a plan in a county does not establish that a particular Augusta-area doctor or hospital participates in its network.
Use the exact product and year when checking the insurer's directory: CareSource Marketplace, Alliant or Ambetter. Confirm the clinician and office location, and check with the practice before making a choice based on continued access. This report does not certify any named clinician, hospital or medicine as covered.
Geography also affects which plans appear. Oscar's 2027 Richmond County entries in the state files have partial-county service areas. They should not be treated as available at every Richmond address, or omitted from an individual's search simply because they are not countywide. Use the actual address in the state's plan-preview tool.
Update the household information, then compare again
The full-price figures here may differ substantially from an eligible household's bill after assistance. Georgia Access distinguishes premium tax credits, which can lower the monthly premium, from cost-sharing reductions, which can lower eligible consumers' care costs in a silver plan.
That makes the application part of the comparison. The state's renewal instructions tell customers to review notices, update their information and compare plans rather than assume last year's choice still fits. If a 2026 insurer no longer offers plans in the customer's area for 2027, the customer needs to select a new plan.
After choosing, follow the state's post-enrollment instructions: pay the first premium to the insurer by its deadline and respond to required verification notices. The state provides an assistance directory and consumer help at 1-888-687-1503, TTY 711.
The comparison should end with three answers: what the household pays to keep coverage, what it may owe when using care, and whether the plan includes the providers and medicines it needs.
How we checked: GCG compared Georgia Access's official 2026 and 2027 public-use files, using individual medical plans, standard on-exchange variants, age 40, non-tobacco rates and Rating Area 5. Service areas were matched by insurer and service-area identifiers; prices were matched by base plan ID. Selected 2027 benefit limits were checked against the actual insurer summaries linked above. The examples exclude subsidy calculations, dental plans and catastrophic coverage. Sources were checked November 4, 2026. Premiums do not count toward the stated out-of-pocket limits, which also exclude certain uncovered costs; read each plan's full terms.