Wichita ? Kansas residents who purchase health insurance on their own could see their premiums increase up to 25.4 percent next year under new rates approved by the state’s Insurance Department this week.

The state agency said fewer than 5 percent of residents would be affected by the rate increases it approved on Tuesday, The Wichita Eagle reported.

Companies initially had suggested rate hikes as high as 39 percent. The increases don’t affect people who buy the insurance through their employers.

Officials cite several reasons in why individual insurances plans are increasing quicker than group plans.

One is the guaranteed coverage for the plans granted through the Affordable Care Act, said Craig Van Aalst, assistant director of the health and life division at the Insurance Department.

This was the first time insurance companies had a full year of experience with Affordable Care Act claims before the companies had to set rates for the following year. Officials say the steep increases stem from more expensive claims than previously expected.

“The people that went to the exchange or the marketplace . they have not been to the doctor for a long time, and I think they were more sick than anyone realized, because no one had been tracking them,” said Cindy Hermes, director of public outreach for the Insurance Department.

A June report from the Department of Health and Human Services shows that Kansas has the fifth-highest risk score for individual insurance plans in the nation, meaning that companies consider Kansas residents riskier to insure.

Currently, three companies comprise most of the Kansas health insurance market. They are BlueCross BlueShield, Aetna and Coventry Health and Life. Starting Jan. 1, Kansas residents also will be able to purchase insurance from UnitedHealthcare.