You can't buy Health Insurance anytime of the year. According to the ACA Law, anyone can buy insurance during the open enrollment period, which is November 1, 2018 - December 15, 2018 for year 2019. For this year, the open enrollment is over, but you may still be able to enroll in a health insurance plan for 2018 if you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period. You're eligible if you have certain life events, like getting married, having a baby, or losing other health coverage.
Here are the Life changes that can qualify you for a Special Enrollment Period
Changes in household
You may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you or anyone in your household in the past 60 days:
Got married. Pick a plan by the last day of the month and your coverage can start the first day of the next month.
Had a baby, adopted a child, or placed a child for foster care. Your coverage can start the day of the event — even if you enroll in the plan up to 60 days afterward.
Got divorced or legally separated and lost health insurance. Note: Divorce or legal separation without losing coverage doesn’t qualify you for a Special Enrollment Period.
Death. You’ll be eligible for a Special Enrollment Period if someone on your household dies and as a result you’re no longer eligible for your current health plan.
Changes in residence- Household moves that qualify you for a Special Enrollment Period:
- Moving to a new home in a new ZIP code or county
- Moving to the U.S. from a foreign country or United States territory
- A student moving to or from the place they attend school
- A seasonal worker moving to or from the place they both live and work
- Moving to or from a shelter or other transitional housing
Note: Moving only for medical treatment or staying somewhere for vacation doesn’t qualify you for an SEP.
Important: You must prove you had qualifying health coverage for one or more days during the 60 days before your move. You don’t need to provide proof if you’re moving from a foreign country or United States territory.
Loss of health insurance You may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you or anyone in your household lost qualifying health coverage in the past 60 days OR expects to lose coverage in the next 60 days.
Coverage losses that may qualify you for a Special Enrollment Period:
You lose health coverage through a parent or guardian because you’re no longer a dependent.
Important: Losing coverage you have as a dependent doesn’t qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you voluntarily drop the coverage. You also don’t qualify if you or your family member lose coverage because you don’t pay your premium.
Losing individual health coverage for a plan or policy you bought yourself You may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you lose individual health coverage, including if:
Your individual plan or your Marketplace plan is discontinued (no longer exists).
You lose eligibility for a student health plan.
You lose eligibility for a plan because you no longer live in the plan’s service area.
Your individual or group health plan coverage year is ending in the middle of the calendar year and you choose not to renew it.
Important: Losing individual coverage doesn’t qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you voluntarily drop coverage, if you lose coverage because you didn’t pay your premiums, or if you lose your coverage because you didn’t provide required documentation when asked for more information.
Losing eligibility for Medicaid/Medi-Cal or CHIP- You may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you lose Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) because:
You lose your eligibility. For example, you may have a change in household income that makes you ineligible for Medicaid, or you may become ineligible for pregnancy-related or medically needy Medicaid.
Your child ages off CHIP.
Losing eligibility for Medicare-You may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you become no longer eligible for premium-free Medicare Part A.
You don’t qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if:
You lose Medicare Part A because you didn’t pay your Medicare premium.
You lose Medicare Parts B, C, or D only.
Losing coverage through a family member-You may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you lose qualifying health coverage you had through a parent, spouse, or other family member. This might happen if:
You turn 26 (or the maximum dependent age allowed in your state) and can no longer be on a parent’s health plan.
You lose job-based health coverage through a family member’s employer because that family member loses health coverage or coverage for dependents.
You lose health coverage through a spouse due to a divorce or legal separation.
You lose health coverage due to the death of a family member.
You lose health coverage through a parent or guardian because you’re no longer a dependent.
Important: Losing coverage you have as a dependent doesn’t qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you voluntarily drop the coverage. You also don’t qualify if you or your family member lose coverage because you don’t pay your premium.
More qualifying changes
Other life circumstances that may qualify you for a Special Enrollment Period:
Changes that make you no longer eligible for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Gaining membership in a federally recognized tribe or status as an Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) Corporation shareholder
Becoming newly eligible for Marketplace coverage because you became a U.S. citizen
Leaving incarceration
AmeriCorps State and National, VISTA, and NCCC members starting or ending their service
Is the penalty for not having health insurance still in force? Yes, for year 2018 the penalty still applies.
The individual shared responsibility provision of the Affordable Care Act requires taxpayers to have qualifying health coverage (also known as minimum essential coverage), qualify for a coverage exemption, or make an individual shared responsibility payment when filing their federal income tax return for year 2018.
The health sharing ministries are explicitly exempt from ACA requirements, so they can offer monthly dues that are lower than typical insurance premiums, especially for people who accept less coverage and more personal risk.
- You can become a member of a health care sharing ministry and get a plan anytime - there is no open enrollment requirements, so you can apply anytime.
- When you file taxes, you can select the statutory exemption from the requirement to have minimum essential coverage and you will not have to pay a penalty. See the IRS provisions about the Shared Responsibility and Exemptions from paying the penalty: https://www.irs.gov/affordable-care-act/individuals-and-families/questions-and-answers-on-the-individual-shared-responsibility-provision
Faith Based Health Insurance Plans are not insurance.
These plans are different from the health insurance you can buy through the exchanges or directly from health insurance companies. Since the Faith Based Health Insurance Plans are actually not insurance, they work a bit differently. This is not insurance after all, rather an alternative for those that:
These plans are different from the health insurance you can buy through the exchanges or directly from health insurance companies. Since the Faith Based Health Insurance Plans are actually not insurance, they work a bit differently. This is not insurance after all, rather an alternative for those that:
- Missed the open enrollment for health insurance
- Would like an alternative to paying the penalty for not having health insurance in 2018 (ACA exempt based on the membership with Health Care Sharing Ministry)
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