Nonprofits Are Helping Musicians Pay for Insurance in Austin, Texas, and Beyond

A nonprofit and a local public health agency are subsidizing marketplace health insurance for Austin music artists, even as shifting marketplace conditions make the program a more expensive proposition. It’s becoming a model for other cities and sectors.

By: Olivia Aldridge, KUT

Outlets: KFF Health News

Published: September 9, 2026

Words: 1,304

Last Updated: 1 week, 2 days ago

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AUSTIN, Texas — Musician Zack Morgan jokes that when he lost his corporate job in 2015, it was like being pushed off a cliff. For years, he said, he’d been playing both sides of the Austin coin: tech worker by day, funk keyboardist by night.

“Maybe this is my sign to try the full-time music thing,” Morgan recalled thinking. “Step one in that was: Get health insurance again.”

Austin bills itself as “the Live …

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