Mark your calendars. Open enrollment begins on November 1 and runs through January 31. Despite all the bills to replace and/or repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obama Care), you can still face a penalty for not having health insurance. The penalty for not having health insurance is set at $695 per adult in a family, $347.50 per child under 18, or up to 2.5 percent of the family income.
Why do I have to pay a penalty for not having health insurance? The reason behind the penalty is simple. The penalty is to encourage healthy young people to purchase health insurance. For health insurance prices to be affordable, we need as many people as possible to be covered. Healthy young people have accidents too, and the average stay in the hospital can be more than $40,000. Being without coverage will mean that you don’t get any medical benefits that could help save your life.
At BenefitPackages.com, we are a certified health insurance agency for Covered California. We can help you determine whether you qualify for financial assistance to lower your premiums. The rate of uninsured people in California is dropping faster than the nations average.
In 2018, Anthem Blue Cross will not be participating in most California regions. However, 82 percent of consumers will be able to choose from 3 or more health insurance carriers. If you are currently enrolled in Anthem Blue Cross, please do not hesitate to contact us for more options. Check out our frequently asked questions for more information.
At BenefitPackages, we can look at cost sharing reductions to help lower your premiums. Cost-sharing reductions allow individuals making less than $30,000, and families of four earning approximately $60,000 a year to pay less for services such as copays and deductibles. Ask us if you think you might qualify for an Enhanced Silver Plan. Premium assistance is available for individuals making less than $48,000 and $98,000 for families of four.
Open enrollment Begins November 1 and will end January 31. If you don’t enroll during Open Enrollment you can only purchase coverage if you qualify under a Special Enrollment Period (SEP), such as loss of coverage from your employer. The reason for this window is to prevent people from purchasing coverage after they are sick.
Let us make the process of getting health insurance easy for you. Applying through Covered California can be time consuming and tedious. Enrolling through BenefitPackages doesn’t cost you an extra nickel. We are compensated by the carriers. Act now, get covered. Don’t wait before it is too late. If you are already covered, contact us to confirm you have the best coverage for the best price. Get a free quote!
Here are the following dates that you need to submit your application by for an effective date:
November 1 through December 15 for a January 1 effective date
December 16 through January 15 for a February 1 effective date
January 16 through January 31 for a March 1 effective date