Fort Cavazos sits on Killeen's doorstep, and the post shapes almost everything about the local labor market, including how people gain and lose health coverage. Soldiers separate from service, spouses move between jobs with each reassignment, and contractors work the post on terms that rarely include benefits. Texas gives all of them more bridge options than most states allow.
The rules here
| Max initial term (short-term) | Less than 12 months |
| Max total duration | 36 months (Tex. Ins. Code ch. 1509) |
| Products available | ACA marketplace, short-term, extended short-term, fixed indemnity, supplemental |
| Exchange type | Federal marketplace (HealthCare.gov) |
| Medicaid expansion | No |
What's available in Killeen
| Coverage line | Available here | Key limit | Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACA marketplace plans | Yes | Open enrollment or a qualifying event | ACA plans |
| Short-term medical | Yes | Initial term under 12 months | Short-term |
| Extended short-term (multi-year) | Yes | Up to 36 months total | Extended plans |
| Fixed indemnity | Yes | Pays set cash amounts, not a substitute for major medical | Fixed indemnity |
| Supplemental (accident, critical illness, dental, vision) | Yes | Pairs with other coverage | Accident · Critical illness · Dental · Vision |
Short-term and fixed indemnity plans are not ACA compliant and do not count as minimum essential coverage. They are medically underwritten and typically exclude pre-existing conditions.
What one person pays for coverage in Texas
Average monthly premiums for individual coverage. Family pricing differs; quotes are individual.
| Coverage type | Monthly premium (individual) | What that number is |
|---|---|---|
| ACA marketplace (before subsidy) | $709 avg. | State average, before tax credits (CMS Marketplace OEP, 2026).1 |
| ACA marketplace (after average subsidy) | $41 after credit | State average, after the average tax credit, among subsidized enrollees (CMS Marketplace OEP, 2026).1 |
| Employer coverage (single / family) | $653 / $2009 single / family | State average total monthly premium, single / family; employee pays about $126/mo toward single coverage (MEPS-IC, 2024).2 |
| Medicaid | $0 or nominal for those who qualify | Program design, not an average; eligibility is income-based5 |
| Fixed indemnity | $235.39 mean | Among GetHealthPlans.com clients in Texas with individual coverage, as of July 2026.3 |
| Accident | $44.20 median | Among GetHealthPlans.com clients in Texas with individual coverage, as of July 2026.3 |
| Critical Illness | $30.72 median | Among GetHealthPlans.com clients in Texas with individual coverage, as of July 2026.3 |
| Dental | $46.02 median | Among GetHealthPlans.com clients in Texas with individual coverage, as of July 2026.3 |
Self-employed Killeen residents start from the individual marketplace benchmark above. Subsidy eligibility depends on your household income and size for the year; an estimate is never a guarantee, and a licensed agent can run your real numbers before you commit.
Averages from federal data and our own client base, not quotes. Your price depends on your age, household, income, and plan choice.
Killeen at a glance
Killeen grew up alongside one of the largest active-duty armored posts in the country, and the military presence still drives the local economy through soldiers, veterans, military spouses, and the contractors who serve the installation. The city anchors the western half of the Killeen-Temple metro, with a steady flow of families arriving and departing on military timelines that rarely line up with open enrollment.
| Population | County | Metro |
|---|---|---|
| ~153,000 | Bell (FIPS 48027) | Killeen-Temple |
Three Killeen situations
Marcus, 27, separating from the Army this fall. His military coverage ends at separation, which opens a Special Enrollment Period on HealthCare.gov. If the job he lines up does not start benefits for 90 days, a short-term plan covers the gap without locking him into anything long.
Denise, 41, military spouse doing bookkeeping from home. Her husband's orders keep the family covered, but her own side business is growing and she wants dental and vision the family plan handles poorly. Supplemental lines can be layered on without touching the base coverage.
Ray, 55, post contractor between assignments. His 1099 work comes in waves. An extended short-term plan can run up to 36 months in Texas, which carries him across slow stretches, though his controlled blood pressure will go through underwriting and could be excluded.
How the Texas rules work
Chapter 1509 of the Texas Insurance Code allows short-term plans with an initial term under 12 months and a total duration of up to 36 months. The Texas Department of Insurance describes these plans as lasting up to 3 years. That limit comes from state law, so it does not move when federal policy shifts; the 2024 federal rule that would have shortened these plans is currently not being enforced per the August 7, 2025 tri-agency statement.
Texas did not expand Medicaid. Adults earning below the federal poverty level who do not fit a traditional Medicaid category can fall into the coverage gap, earning too little for marketplace subsidies and too much, or fitting the wrong category, for Medicaid. For those households an honest conversation about limited-benefit products matters more than a sales pitch.
Texas uses HealthCare.gov, with open enrollment running November 1 through January 15.
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Keep reading — more Texas guides
Premium data methodology. 1 Marketplace premium averages reflect the average monthly premium before advance premium tax credits, the average monthly premium after advance premium tax credits among subsidized enrollees, and the percentage of enrollees receiving advance premium tax credits, for Texas, as reported in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Marketplace Open Enrollment Period Public Use Files, 2026 plan year, available at cms.gov. Figures are statewide averages across all metal tiers, ages, and household sizes; your premium will differ based on your age, household, income, county, and plan selection.
2 Employer coverage averages reflect the average total monthly premium for single and family coverage at private-sector establishments in Texas, including both employer and employee contributions, as reported in the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Insurance Component (MEPS-IC), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2024 tables, available at meps.ahrq.gov. Employee contribution figure reflects the average employee share of the single-coverage premium. Employer plan costs vary by employer, plan design, and firm size.
3 Client averages are calculated from GetHealthPlans.com (MTG Insurance Agency LLC) internal book-of-business records as of July 15, 2026 and reflect the median or mean monthly premium, as labeled, among active policies providing individual coverage (one covered person) of the stated product type held by our clients residing in the stated state or, where labeled agency-wide, across all states in which we operate. Family and multi-person policies are excluded so that figures reflect what one person pays. Figures are shown only for states and products where our records include a sufficient number of active individual policies to report a meaningful average, with a minimum of ten; combinations below that threshold are not shown. Where a figure is labeled "median," half of our client policies in that group pay less and half pay more. Our client base reflects the products we sell, skews toward medically underwritten coverage, and may not represent all buyers or all plans available in a state. These figures are historical averages of premiums actually paid by our clients, are not quotes, offers, or projections, and are not statements of what any individual will pay. Individual premiums are determined by the insurer at application based on age, location, term length, benefit selections, and underwriting outcomes.
4 No federal or state agency publishes average premium data for short-term limited duration insurance or fixed indemnity insurance. Where we do not display a client-base figure for these products, it is because we do not have sufficient policy volume in that state to report a meaningful average. Short-term and fixed indemnity products are medically underwritten, are not major medical coverage, are not required to cover pre-existing conditions or essential health benefits, and do not constitute minimum essential coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
5 Medicaid and CHIP are public programs, not insurance products sold by this agency. Premiums are $0 or nominal for those who qualify; eligibility is determined by your state based on income, household size, and other factors. The figure shown describes program design, not an average. Contact your state Medicaid agency or HealthCare.gov to check eligibility.