Health insurance in New Hanover County, North Carolina
4 insurers sell 65 marketplace plans here, and 8.9% of under-65 residents have no coverage at all.
Source: CMS Marketplace Open Enrollment Public Use Files and US Census Small Area Health Insurance Estimates, 2026 release.
Who sells here, and how much choice that gives
4 insurers sell marketplace plans in New Hanover County, offering 65 plans between them, roughly 16 each. The number has not changed since the previous plan year.
How many people here have no coverage
8.9% of New Hanover County's 189,547 under-65 residents have no health coverage — 16,781 people. That is close to the North Carolina rate of 10.2%, and puts New Hanover County in the middle half of the 1,817 counties on this site (1259th).
How much the marketplace is used
22,323 New Hanover County residents selected a marketplace plan for 2026: 118 per thousand under-65 residents, 569th of 1,817. That is above the 78 per thousand typical of published counties. 3,292 of them — 15% — were new rather than renewing.
New Hanover County against North Carolina
New Hanover County is the 11th largest of the 24 North Carolina counties we publish. Its uninsured rate runs 1.3 points lower than North Carolina overall and its 4 insurers sit between the state's 2 and 6. Marketplace use is about 1.4 times the North Carolina rate.
| New Hanover County | North Carolina | Published median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uninsured, under 65 | 8.9% | 10.2% | 9.9% |
| Insurers selling | 4 | 2–6 | 4 |
| Plans offered | 65 | — | 57 |
| Selections per 1,000 | 118 | 87 | 78 |
| New rather than renewing | 15% | 17% | 15% |
Counties of a similar size nearby
| County | Under 65 | Uninsured | Insurers | Plans |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaston County | 197,709 | 11.1% | 3 | 60 |
| Iredell County | 170,474 | 9.2% | 4 | 63 |
| Onslow County | 168,928 | 8.1% | 2 | 37 |
All of them have fewer insurers than this county's 4, which makes it the stronger market locally.
65 plans is a lot to work through. Start with network type, then the metal tiers. Other North Carolina counties.