Best Cheap Health Insurance in South Dakota (2023)

Residents can purchase cheap health insurance in South Dakota on the federally run state insurance exchange. South Dakota currently has two insurers that provide coverage for the state: Avera Health Plans Inc. and Sanford Health Plan.

We conducted research and found that the Avera 5800 is the cheapest Silver health plan available in the majority of counties in South Dakota. The Avera Direct 5800 is the cheapest Silver plan in the state, but only in three counties.

Cheapest health insurance by plan tier

We researched all of the policies available in the state and identified the lowest-cost health insurance options by plan tier to help you compare the different costs and benefits of the levels. For example, the Avera Direct 5800 is the cheapest Silver plan, which has a monthly premium of $514 and a deductible of $5,800. However, the cheapest Gold plan, the Sanford TRUE $1,750, costs $13 more per month but has a much lower deductible of $1,750.

In the table below, we list the cheapest health insurance plans by coverage tier for South Dakota, along with the deductible, out-of-pocket maximum and monthly cost for a 40-year-old.

There are currently four different tiers available in South Dakota: Catastrophic, Bronze, Silver and Gold. These plans differ in the costs and benefits that they provide. Generally, the higher the metal tier, the higher the monthly premium. Age is another key factor that will affect your monthly premium: As you grow older, your monthly health insurance costs will increase regardless of coverage tier.

Finding your best health insurance coverage in South Dakota

The best health insurance for you depends on where you live, your health care needs and your financial situation. Here are some general guidelines to follow when looking through the state health insurance marketplace.

On the other hand, those who are young and healthy or don't expect to have many medical costs may wish to choose a plan in a lower tier, such as Bronze or Catastrophic, to save money.

Gold plans: Best for high expected medical costs

The cheapest Gold plan in South Dakota is the Sanford TRUE $1,750. Compare all tiers in South Dakota above.

Gold plans make up the highest metal tier available in South Dakota and typically cover the greatest share of out-of-pocket costs, which means you'll pay lower deductibles, copays and coinsurance.

Generally, Gold health insurance policies are the best in terms of cost-effectiveness if you expect to incur high medical expenses, such as from chronic conditions, or if you have costly prescriptions. You can expect these plans to cover about 80% of your medical costs, while you pay for the remaining 20%.

Silver plans: Best for those with low incomes or average medical costs

The cheapest Silver plan in South Dakota is the Avera Direct 5800. Compare all tiers in South Dakota above.

Silver plans are a good health insurance option for those looking for a balance between costs and benefits.

For example, the Avera Direct 5800 Silver plan has a deductible of $5,800, which means you need to pay this amount for your medical costs before the plan begins to cover your expenses. The $5,800 deductible is higher than the $1,750 deductible on the Sanford TRUE $1,750 Gold plan, but it is much lower than the $8,000 deductible on the Avera Direct 8000 Bronze plan.

However, Silver health plans can still be quite costly if you don't qualify for premium tax credits. Now, insurers have to cover cost-sharing reduction (CSR) subsidies instead of the federal government. This can result in companies increasing their Silver premiums.

If you are part of a lower-income household, you may qualify for CSR subsidies with a Silver health plan, which would further lower your out-of-pocket expenses. Typical Silver plans cover about 70% of your health care costs, while you pay 30%. But under CSR subsidies, you could qualify for a Silver plan that covers up to 94% of your health care costs.

Bronze and Catastrophic plans: Best for young, healthy people

The cheapest Bronze plan in South Dakota is the Avera Direct 8000. The cheapest Catastrophic plan is the Sanford TRUE $9,100. Compare all tiers in South Dakota above.

Catastrophic plans may offer the lowest monthly rates, but they're limited to people younger than 30 or those who qualify for an exemption. You are also unable to use premium tax credits to reduce your monthly premiums. Furthermore, these health plans provide the least coverage and are only recommended if you have the financial means to cover a large portion of your health care expenses in case of an emergency.

Bronze plans are open to everyone and offer cheaper monthly premiums than higher metal tier plans alongside reduced coverage and higher out-of-pocket costs. So if you need medical care during the year, you have to pay more out of pocket before coverage kicks in. On average, you can expect a Bronze plan to cover about 60% of your health care costs, while you pay for the other 40%.

Health insurance companies in South Dakota

There are currently only two health insurance companies on the South Dakota state exchange: Avera Health Plans Inc. and Sanford Health Plan. Both of these insurers have been on the exchange for the past few years. All counties have access to both insurance companies, but the monthly rates for the health plans might be different depending on location.

Cheapest health insurance plan by county

Finding the best health plan for your family can be challenging since the plans offered and their monthly premiums may change depending on the region you're in. To make this process simpler, we compared rates for every policy in South Dakota to find the cheapest Silver health plan in each county.

Average cost of health insurance by family size in South Dakota

When considering health insurance plans for your family, keep in mind that factors like the number of people who need coverage and their ages will affect the monthly premium. If you add children to your health insurance plan, each child will cost a flat rate for coverage until they are 15 years old. Upon reaching the age of 15, the monthly rate will increase as they grow older.

For instance, the average monthly health insurance cost for a family of three, assuming two 40-year-old parents and a child on a Silver plan, is $2,058 in South Dakota. If you were to add another child to the plan, the monthly premium would increase by roughly $474. So for a family of four, the total monthly cost of health coverage would be about $2,533.

Health insurance rate changes in South Dakota

The average monthly cost of health insurance for a 40-year-old in South Dakota has increased by 5%, or $33, since 2022. Premiums across each plan tier varied, with Bronze policies experiencing the largest cost increase — 45% higher rates for 2023 plans.

Methodology

South Dakota health insurance premium and plan details for this analysis were taken from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) government website. We then calculated the average cost of a policy by age, plan tier, county and family size within the state using the CMS public use files (PUFs). Plans and providers for which county-level data was included in the CMS Crosswalk file were used in our analysis; those excluded from this data set may not appear.