Texas Open Enrollment 2027: Dates, the December 15 Cutoff, and the Silver Plan Quirk

Texans get two pieces of mail in October. The carrier sends a renewal notice with a 2027 premium, and HealthCare.gov sends a notice about what it plans to do with your application. Most people read the first one, wince, and stop. This is the short version of what both letters mean, when the clock actually runs out, and one Texas-only pricing rule that changes which metal tier you should even be looking at.

The 2027 Texas calendar

Why December 15 is the real deadline

The window and the effective date are two different clocks. HealthCare.gov starts coverage on the first of the month after you enroll, with December 15 as the cutoff for January 1. Pick a plan on December 20 and you are covered starting February 1. That is fine if your 2026 plan is still running through January. It is a problem if your carrier is leaving Texas, if you let the old plan lapse, or if you are coming off a group plan that ended December 31. A self-employed electrician in Tarrant County who enrolls on January 8 has spent a full month uninsured, and no special enrollment period fixes that retroactively. So the date on every reminder we send is December 15, not January 15.

Gold can cost less than Silver in Texas

This is the part of the letter almost nobody explains. Texas law requires insurers to add the cost of cost-sharing reductions to Silver plans only, and the state raised that load to 40% for 2026. Silver plans are priced as though every buyer gets the extra cost-sharing help, whether or not they qualify for it.

The effect splits by income. If you receive a premium tax credit, the inflated Silver benchmark inflates your credit too, which is part of why roughly 92% of Texas Marketplace enrollees get help and the average credit ran about $667 a month in 2026. If you pay full price, Silver is often the worst value on the shelf. In many Texas counties the lowest-cost Gold plan prices below the Silver benchmark, so a full-price household can buy a lower deductible for less money by skipping the middle tier. When you compare your renewal against alternatives, put Gold and Bronze on the table, not just other Silvers.

Who left Texas for 2027, and who stayed

Two carriers are gone after December 31. Cigna is leaving the individual market in every state, which takes about 12,000 Texas members with it. Baylor Scott & White is exiting the individual market as well. Aetna already left at the end of 2025. That leaves 14 carriers for 2027: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, the two Ambetter entities (Superior and Celtic), Oscar, UnitedHealthcare, Molina, CHRISTUS, Community Health Choice, Wellpoint, Sendero, Imperial, Moda, Harbor Health, and Community First. The lineup varies sharply by county. Several north-central Texas counties have Blue Cross and Blue Shield as the only choice, while Houston, Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio households will see eight or more.

Four lines in the renewal letter that matter

• The 2027 premium. Filed increases range from 1.3% to about 34% depending on carrier: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas asked for roughly 9 to 10%, Oscar 9.6%, Molina 12.7%, Community Health Choice about 27%, and the UnitedHealthcare entities 27% and 34%. The weighted statewide average is about 14.1%. Final approved rates can differ from the filings.
• The income your credit was calculated on. HealthCare.gov reuses last year's figure. A good 2026 for your business means a smaller credit than the letter shows, and a slow one means a larger credit you will not get unless you update the application.
• Mapped or crosswalked plan language. Cigna and Baylor Scott & White members will see this. It means the Marketplace picked a replacement for you. It is a placeholder, not a recommendation.
• The first premium due date. A 2027 plan is not in force until the January premium is paid. Autopay set up for the 2026 plan does not always carry over to a new carrier.

Do it in this order

1. Before November 1: settle your realistic 2027 household income. The credit runs out at 400% of the poverty line, about $63,840 for one person and $132,000 for a family of four, and everything below depends on which side of that number you land.
2. First week of November: window-shop the full county list on HealthCare.gov. Compare the lowest-cost Gold against your Silver renewal, check that your doctors and hospital are in each network, and read the deductible and out-of-pocket maximum before the premium.
3. Same week, if you are healthy and above the credit line: get a medically underwritten quote so the Marketplace number and the private number sit side by side. Texas is one of the strongest underwritten markets in the country for exactly this household.
4. By December 15: enroll or switch and confirm the January 1, 2027 effective date on the confirmation screen.
5. Before January 1: pay the first premium and confirm autopay with the 2027 carrier, especially if you changed carriers.

After January 15

Once the window closes, HealthCare.gov only reopens for a qualifying event: losing job-based coverage, a move, marriage, a new child, and a few others, each with a 60-day special enrollment period. The private lanes do not close. A healthy Texan can apply for a medically underwritten plan in any month, and a short-term plan can carry a household to the next window. Neither takes a tax credit and neither is guaranteed issue, which is why the cheapest plan of all is meeting the December 15 date.

If you would rather have one licensed Texas broker read both October letters with you, pull the county list, and run the underwritten quote in the same call, start with our Texas health insurance guide or the short form on our individuals page. One call, real numbers, and your information is never sold.

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