Some 4,000 Granite Staters who work for small businesses may have lost workplace-based health insurance during the pandemic, but the individual Obamacare market appears to have taken up much of the slack, according to a preliminary report released by the NH Insurance Department Friday morning.

According to the report, small group plans (organizations with 50 or fewer employees) reported a total of 4,000 fewer members in July of this year compared to July 2019, a nearly 6% decline. But it’s not clear whether the pandemic caused the decline since enrollment in the small group market has been declining since at least 2015.

During the same time frame, the number of people enrolled in the Obamacare individual market rose by about 3,000. There was hardly any change in the large group and fully insured market, according to the report.

The report also notes that individual premiums have remained constant this year and are expected to fall sharply next year, thinks to a new way to pool those with high risk.

But deductibles are much higher on individual plans, and they are pretty high on group plans as well.

The average small group deductible, for instance, was over $3,500 in the small group market — the highest in New England and about a $1,000 higher than in the U.S. average. The average individual plan’s deductible was $4,800.

There has also been a shift in the individual market to bronze level plans, from 38% in 2019, to 41%. The bronze level has lower premiums than the silver and gold plans, but higher deductibles. — BOB SANDERS