State government, banking, and law firms fill Richmond's downtown towers, while VCU and its academic health system anchor one of the largest medical campuses in the state. Around that core sits a very different economy: breweries and restaurants in Scott's Addition, artists and freelancers in the Fan, and small firms everywhere in between. The freelance side of town carries its own coverage risk, and Virginia's short-term rules give it almost no slack.
The rules here
| Max initial term (short-term) | 3 months |
| Max total duration | 6 months of coverage in any 12 |
| Products available | ACA marketplace, short-term, fixed indemnity, supplemental |
| Exchange type | State exchange (Virginia's Insurance Marketplace) |
| Medicaid expansion | Yes |
What's available in Richmond
| Coverage line | Available here | Key limit | Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACA marketplace plans | Yes | Open enrollment or a qualifying event | ACA plans |
| Short-term medical | Yes | 3-month terms, 6 months max in any 12 | Short-term |
| Extended short-term (multi-year) | No | Not available under Virginia law | |
| 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 Virginia
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) | $575 avg. | State average, before tax credits (CMS Marketplace OEP, 2026).1 |
| ACA marketplace (after average subsidy) | $124 after credit | State average, after the average tax credit, among subsidized enrollees (CMS Marketplace OEP, 2026).1 |
| Employer coverage (single / family) | $682 / $2127 single / family | State average total monthly premium, single / family; employee pays about $155/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 | sec-363.11 median | Among GetHealthPlans.com clients in Virginia with individual coverage, as of July 2026.3 |
Richmond's self-employed, from freelance designers to restaurant owners, start with the individual marketplace benchmark above. Household income and size for the year determine any subsidy. Estimates are not guarantees, and a licensed agent can price your household precisely.
Averages from federal data and our own client base, not quotes. Your price depends on your age, household, income, and plan choice.
Richmond at a glance
Richmond is Virginia's capital and the hub of its own metro along the James River, with the VCU medical campus among the region's largest employers. The city has drawn a younger creative and professional class over the past decade, and a large share of that group works freelance or for firms too small for group benefits.
| Population | County | Metro |
|---|---|---|
| ~227,000 | Richmond city (FIPS 51760) | Richmond |
Three Richmond situations
Beth, 34, freelance graphic designer in the Fan. Freelance is her permanent state, so short-term coverage never fits: Virginia caps it at 6 months in any 12. She holds a marketplace plan year round through Virginia's Insurance Marketplace and updates her income estimate as projects land.
Carlos, 41, opening a restaurant in Scott's Addition. He left a corporate job with group benefits. That loss is a qualifying event, so he enrolls his family on the state marketplace mid-year. The first-year income dip may earn a larger subsidy than he expects.
Dee, 24, barista finishing a VCU degree. She ages off her parents' plan this year. With barista income, she likely qualifies for either a strong subsidy or Medicaid under Virginia's expansion. Either way there is no coverage gap waiting for her at the bottom of the income scale.
How Virginia's rules work
Virginia permits short-term plans only in 3-month terms with a maximum of 6 months of coverage in any 12-month period, and no extended short-term product is sold in the state. Those numbers make the product a narrow bridge for brief, defined gaps. Anyone whose situation lasts longer than a season needs a marketplace plan, and qualifying events open the door mid-year.
Enrollment runs through Virginia's Insurance Marketplace, the state exchange. Open enrollment dates are set by the state exchange, generally opening November 1. Virginia expanded Medicaid, so adults with income below the subsidy floor typically qualify for Medicaid instead of going without.
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Keep reading — more Virginia 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 Virginia, 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 Virginia, 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.