Covered California/Health care reform
The health care reform, or Obama care, was signed into law in 2010, enrollment began October 1, 2013 with policy benefits starting on January 1st, 2014. Every state operates differently, some are run by a federal program and others are run by the state itself. The reform was designed to make insurance affordable for all and eliminate pre-existing condition declination.
What you should know about Covered California & the health care reform.
- Open enrollment: There is a specific period of time in the year anyone can apply for health insurance, that is from November 1st to December 15th. There are strict requirements to be met for anyone who wishes to apply for insurance outside of these dates, that goes for insurance through Covered California and directly with the carriers.
- Special Enrollment: In order to apply for coverage outside of the open enrollment period you must have a life qualifying event. These are events such as; losing your current health insurance, moving into California permanently, drastic income changes, turning 26 years old and being no longer eligible for your parent’s plan.
- Subsidy: Subsidy is an amount of tax credit the government will give base on your income.
- Tax Penalty: A tax penalty can occur in a couple of situations. If the amount of income you estimated in your application does not match up with what you file on your taxes the government can ask for that amount back. If you were on Medi-cal because of the amount of income you estimated in your application but then filed your taxes reporting a much higher income making you ineligible for Medi-cal you can be charged by the government. There are many other situations that can result in a tax penalty so it is important to be as accurate as possible in your application.
These are just a few key words and examples that should be minded while applying for insurance. It can be a very confusing process to endure when it’s all new to you. Our office handles Covered California applications every day, call us to help you in your health care journey.
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