Michigan Health Insurance Broker & Agent: Compare Private Plans
November 14, 2026 · by Bernie Sobalvarro
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Led by Bernie Sobalvarro, Senior Advisor, with his team of licensed agents
Want a Michigan health insurance broker or agent who explains your choices in plain English, or Spanish? I am Bernie Sobalvarro, an independent health insurance advisor and licensed broker (NPN 19189235), licensed in Michigan and 30 other states. By phone or webinar screen share, I compare full-price ACA plans with private, medically underwritten options for people from Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor to metro Detroit and Lansing. I work for you, not an insurance company.
A typical Michigan call starts like this: you priced a plan, found out you earn too much for a subsidy, and the full price was hard to justify. If you are healthy, you may qualify for private, medically underwritten coverage, and I compare it line by line with that full-price plan. I mostly help self-employed people, 1099 contractors, families and small business owners. You can check my Michigan license on the NIPR license lookup or on our state licenses page.
Who our licensed agents help in Michigan
Whatever brought you to a broker, it probably fits one of these. Our agents handle each one the same way: private underwritten options and full-price ACA plans compared on one sheet, by phone or webinar screen share, anywhere from Grand Rapids to Ann Arbor.
- Turning 26
Your first plan of your own
About to turn 26 around Ann Arbor? Young, healthy applicants are often a good fit for private underwritten plans, and we show the full-price ACA plan beside them so the choice is clear.
- High earners
Over the subsidy limit
Professionals and households in Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor above the subsidy cutoff pay the whole premium. We compare that number with private underwritten options, which ask health questions and can decline.
- Self-employed & 1099
No HR department
No benefits team to pick a plan for you. Freelancers and independent contractors get a written comparison of private underwritten and full-price plans after one call.
- Leaving a job / COBRA
COBRA too expensive
If your job-based coverage is ending, timing matters. We look at COBRA, private underwritten plans and full-price plans, and at when each one could start.
- Families
Covering a spouse and children
If your employer pays for you but not much toward dependents, the family premium can sting. We check private underwritten plans for healthy family members and the full-price ACA alternative.
- Small business 2–30
Coverage for a small staff
Offering coverage to a staff of 2 to 30 is a big call for a small business. We price the group options and the owner’s own private coverage side by side.
Whichever applies, you get a written comparison and no pressure to choose on the call.
Self-employed health insurance in Michigan: who I help
If you searched for a health insurance broker in Grand Rapids or Ann Arbor, here is who I help: independent engineers, designers and suppliers tied to the auto industry in metro Detroit, consultants and university-area professionals in Ann Arbor, business owners and tradespeople in Grand Rapids and Holland, and families in Lansing, Kalamazoo and Traverse City. I help anywhere in Michigan by phone or webinar screen share.
Small businesses are 99.6 percent of Michigan businesses and employ about 1.9 million people, or 47.7 percent of Michigan employees; 809,426 of the state’s 983,079 small businesses have no paid employees (SBA Office of Advocacy, 2025 profile). Deductibility of premiums for the self-employed depends on your situation, so check with a tax professional; this is not tax advice.
Michigan residents shop for ACA coverage on HealthCare.gov (KFF, 2027 marketplace types), and a full-price quote from there gives us a useful reference. I compare that number with private and off-exchange choices. My Michigan license is issued by the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services, which oversees insurance agents in the state.
Private health insurance in Michigan: underwritten and off-exchange plans
When people in Michigan say “off-exchange,” they mean a plan bought straight from an insurer or through a broker, not through the state exchange. Some off-exchange plans are ACA-compliant; others are different kinds of coverage with their own rules. Federal premium help only applies to exchange plans (KFF).
With a medically underwritten plan, your application includes health questions, and the insurer can approve you, change the terms or decline. Pre-existing conditions may be limited or excluded, and these plans do not carry all of the ACA’s protections (Georgetown CHIR). For a healthy Michigan consultant or family, that trade-off is the thing worth pricing. Some private plans use PPO-style networks; availability depends on your county and the plan.
Full-price plan too expensive? How a Michigan health insurance broker compares your options
For Michigan households, I put a full-price ACA plan and private options on one page: whether your doctors and health systems in Grand Rapids, Ann Arbor or metro Detroit are in network, the deductible and out-of-pocket limit, what is covered and excluded, how pre-existing conditions are handled, renewal terms and the monthly price. I will not say “any doctor” is covered; we check your providers plan by plan.
The deciding factor is often your health history. An underwritten plan may turn you down or carve out a condition; a full-price ACA plan will not. If that risk is real for you, the ACA plan may be worth the higher price, and I will tell you so.
Applying outside open enrollment
Open-enrollment and special-enrollment rules apply to ACA individual-market plans, whether you buy them on or off the exchange (45 CFR 147.104). Medically underwritten plans that are not ACA individual-market coverage are generally not tied to that window, so you can usually apply at other times of the year. Availability and start dates depend on the plan and your state, and we confirm them before you apply.
Small business health insurance in Michigan
Running a small Michigan company? If you have a handful of employees, we can compare a small group plan with individual private coverage for you and your staff. See the small business page for how the review works.
Talk with a Michigan health insurance agent
Have your zip code and the birthdates for everyone on the plan. That is all we need for a 15-minute call by phone or webinar screen share. I follow up with the side-by-side in writing; applying is optional, and Spanish is available. Family in another state? I am licensed in 31 states, including Florida and Texas; there is also our Florida guide and Houston page. The full list is on our state licenses page.
Frequently asked questions
Are you a licensed health insurance agent in Michigan?
Yes. I am a licensed health insurance agent and broker in Michigan, NPN 19189235. I am based in Florida and help Michigan clients by phone or webinar screen share, from Detroit to Traverse City. You can confirm my license on the NIPR lookup.
I priced a full-price plan and it was too expensive. What are my private options in Michigan?
If you are healthy, you may qualify for a private, medically underwritten plan. The insurer asks health questions and decides approval, terms and price, so nothing is guaranteed and pre-existing conditions may be limited or excluded, per Georgetown CHIR. I compare those options side by side with the full-price plan you already saw.
What is an off-exchange health insurance plan?
It is a plan you buy directly from an insurer or through a broker instead of through the state exchange. Some are ACA-compliant and some follow different rules. Federal premium help is only available through the exchange, per KFF.
Can I get private health insurance in Michigan outside open enrollment?
Often, yes. Underwritten plans that are not ACA individual-market coverage generally take applications through the year, while ACA plans on or off the exchange keep to open and special enrollment. We confirm before you apply.
What self-employed health insurance options are available in Michigan?
There is no one answer. A healthy self-employed person in Michigan who earns too much for subsidies may want to compare a private underwritten plan; if your health could affect approval, a full-price ACA plan may serve you better. I show you both side by side.
Do I pay a fee to use a health insurance agent?
No fee to you. Brokers are paid by the carrier, and your premium does not change because you used one.
I’m 25 and on a parent’s plan in Michigan. What should I do before 26?
Dependent coverage on a parent’s plan usually lasts until you turn 26 (HealthCare.gov), and losing it generally counts as a qualifying event for ACA plans (HealthCare.gov). If you are healthy, a private, medically underwritten plan may also be an option; it asks health questions and can decline. We compare both before your coverage ends.
Should I take COBRA or look at other plans in Michigan?
No. COBRA lets you keep your employer’s group plan for a limited time, but you may pay the entire premium, up to 102% of the plan’s cost (U.S. Department of Labor). Losing job-based coverage is also generally a qualifying event for ACA plans, and healthy applicants can price private, medically underwritten plans. We compare all three before your election deadline.
Do you sell Medicare plans in Michigan?
No. We do not sell Medicare or Medicaid plans.
Want to talk with a licensed advisor about private or full-price plans? Get a Quote. Hablamos Español. More general questions are on the FAQ page.
Sobal Nationwide Health does not sell Medicare or Medicaid plans.
Licensed Health Insurance Advisor · NPN 19189235 · Licensed in 31 states · Hablamos Español
