You can still get a nationwide PPO in Utah, and for a builder in St. George, where the marketplace offers far fewer choices than Salt Lake, that matters. Here's how southern Utah contractors are covering their families.
Hi, I'm Sam Jaber. I work only in health insurance, from an office in Tampa, and my license includes Utah, so a phone call is all this takes.
Few places in the country have built as fast as St. George and the towns around it. Washington County's new neighborhoods, second homes and retirement communities have kept builders and remodelers stacked with work, and plenty of them moved down from the Wasatch Front or over from Nevada and Arizona to start their own firms. When they shop for health insurance, they run into something builders up north don't: a much shorter list of marketplace plans, and no PPO among them.
Wherever you build in Utah, you can still get a nationwide PPO, and I can set one up for you.
The marketplace won't. Utah's HealthCare.gov lineup for 2026 is 57 individual medical plans from 6 insurers across all 29 counties: 37 HMOs and 20 EPOs, and no PPO. HMOs and EPOs generally pay for care outside the network only in an emergency. A PPO pays something toward those outside visits as well, though you'll owe more of the bill, and nobody makes you get a referral. To buy one, you go to the private market, where plans set your price after reviewing your health.
This is the builder this page is about. A busy southern Utah firm, a healthy household, and a short marketplace list built around local networks, while your work and your family regularly take you to Las Vegas, Mesquite or Arizona.
Price a private nationwide PPO against what's on the short list. These plans underwrite: you disclose your medical history, and the company either issues coverage, says no, or issues it without coverage for one past condition. For a healthy family that review usually means a premium under the marketplace's sticker price. The network isn't limited to southern Utah, so a specialist in Las Vegas or Salt Lake can be in network. We'll read each plan's benefits together.
Next step: Phone me with the ages on your plan and I'll line up a nationwide PPO quote against everything sold in Washington County.
Newer firms and smaller remodelers often net into the federal credit's range. Then a marketplace plan is usually the least expensive option, since the credit only applies to HealthCare.gov plans. With fewer plans in southern Utah, it's especially important to confirm your doctors are in the network before you pick, and to update your income if a big season lifts the year.
Next step: Spend fifteen minutes with me on last year's numbers and this year's bids, and we'll pick an estimate and a plan.
A household member with an ongoing illness or a medication they depend on is a reason to stay with the marketplace at any price, since no marketplace plan may reject an applicant or raise a rate over a diagnosis. In southern Utah, the work is checking which of the available networks includes your specialists, and that list is shorter here.
Next step: Send me your doctors and medications and I'll check which plans sold in your county cover them.
If building slows or the firm is brand new, household income can drop. Because Utah took the Medicaid expansion, a household earning no more than 138% of the poverty line can turn to Medicaid while business recovers. Keep in mind that workers' comp only answers for accidents on the job.
Next step: If the year is shaping up thin, ring me and we'll figure out which door is open to your family right now.
Straight answers, no sales pitch.
For 2026, 22 individual medical plans from 3 insurers are sold in Washington County, compared with 49 plans from 5 insurers in Salt Lake County.
No medical PPO is sold on HealthCare.gov in Utah for 2026; the 57 plans are HMOs and EPOs. I can quote a private nationwide PPO for a builder in good health.
It may be an option. Utah expanded Medicaid, so a household at or under 138% of the poverty line can qualify.
No. It covers injuries on the job only. Illness, checkups and your family need a health plan.
Your county, who's on the plan and a rough idea of the company's profit last year are what I need. I'll show you what's actually sold where you live, price the alternatives, and tell you if your current plan holds up.
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