Mississippi's marketplace has no PPO options, but I can still help you get nationwide PPO coverage. Here's how DeSoto County business owners whose families visit medical providers in Memphis can decide which insurance makes sense.
Hi, I'm Sam Jaber. With licenses in 36 states, I help Mississippi business owners review their household health insurance choices over the phone.
Consider spouses living in Olive Branch who own a trucking dispatch operation. Their home and business are in Mississippi's DeSoto County, but the family's pediatrician, obstetrician, and preferred emergency hospital are just north of the border in Memphis, Tennessee. Because their residence is in Mississippi, they must shop through that state's marketplace, where every available policy is either an HMO or EPO. The deciding issue is whether any of those Mississippi provider networks include the medical professionals and facilities the family relies on in Memphis.
Mississippi residents shopping on HealthCare.gov in 2026 have 48 individual medical options, all classified as HMOs or EPOs. None of those plans is a PPO.
I can help your Mississippi household obtain a nationwide PPO even though the marketplace doesn't offer one. Everyone completes medical questions that the insurer uses to calculate the premium. The nationwide network includes participating doctors and hospitals throughout Tennessee and the other states, allowing your family to use a Memphis pediatrician as an in-network provider.
Outside their designated networks, HMOs and EPOs usually cover services only for emergencies. Fortunately, DeSoto County has 5 marketplace insurers, giving families multiple networks to examine. Some could include the Memphis physicians you prefer, while others might not. We need to verify each doctor individually rather than assume they're covered.
For every plan you're considering, verify whether its network includes these providers:
For business owners earning too much for marketplace assistance, premiums increased considerably. KFF reports that Mississippi's benchmark rate for a 40-year-old rose 36.5% between 2025 and 2026. That higher full premium affects every insured family member, making it even more important to avoid paying for a network that doesn't include your doctors.
Covering an entire family means accounting for more medical relationships than one adult usually has. Think of pediatric visits, sports-related injuries, orthodontic referrals, or allergy specialists for a child. For many DeSoto County households, those providers are located over the Tennessee border. Routine care generally needs to happen within the policy's network to be covered. As your family's list of Memphis doctors grows, finding a single Mississippi HMO or EPO that includes everyone becomes more difficult.
This type of household may find particularly good value with private coverage. The insurer evaluates each applicant's medical history and can approve the policy, decline it, or approve it with one identified condition excluded. Healthy families frequently find private premiums below full marketplace rates while retaining access to their Memphis doctors without searching through multiple HMO networks. If anyone has an ongoing medical condition, tell me before dismissing private coverage. Eligibility depends on the specific circumstances, and I'll compare the PPO with marketplace plans for your family.
Next step: Share everyone's ages and the doctors your family visits. I'll check DeSoto County's available networks and compare them with nationwide PPO pricing.
A difficult business year might make your household eligible for marketplace credits again. But watch the lower income thresholds carefully, because Mississippi hasn't implemented the ACA Medicaid expansion. If you bring on an employee who isn't an owner or relative, the business could also qualify for a SHOP group plan with different provider network options. Track your company's net earnings each month so declining income is reflected in your enrollment estimate before you apply, not afterward. Have those figures ready when we talk.
Next step: If this business year has turned out differently, contact me ahead of renewal and we'll compare the plans again using your updated situation.
Straight answers, no sales pitch.
That depends on whether those doctors participate in your specific network. Mississippi marketplace HMOs and EPOs generally pay for care outside the network only during emergencies.
DeSoto County has five marketplace insurance companies participating in 2026.
No PPO plans are available through Mississippi's marketplace this year. Every offering is an HMO or EPO, although I can arrange a private nationwide PPO for your family if everyone meets the health requirements.
SHOP becomes an option after your company employs someone who is neither a family member nor an owner.
Share your county, everyone's ages, the doctors and hospitals you visit in either state, and an estimate of your company's net earnings. I'll look for coverage that fits where your family actually receives care.
The guide for every state, and other work I help with