Pre-ACA a non-group plan that wasn't some government mandated high risk pool would typically be much cheaper than group coverage, simply because of the fact that it went through underwriting and you could be denied.

It was priced similar to life insurance where a healthy young subscriber could get a very cheap premium because the expected value was so low.

Back when it was legal to charge 10x more for a 55yr olds plan than a 25yr old, people paid more in line with their expected utilization. Flattening the rate curve shifted massive costs to young middle class families, which IMO is shit policy. When you're 55 you are generally done raising the kids and saving for their college, so it's actually not a bad time for your health care premiums to skyrocket.