NOTE: Since June 2019, I’ve been contracted to do occasional healthcare data analysis & advocacy for the Center for American Progress.
The 2020 Open Enrollment Period may have ended (for real this time) for HealthCare.Gov and a few other states, but it continues for residents of 9* other states plus the District of Columbia...and that includes two of the biggest ones. Combined, they represent over 93 million people, or over 28% of the entire U.S. population:
- NEW YORK: Enroll via NYStateofHealth.NY.gov
- Enroll by January 15th for coverage starting February 1st
- Enroll between January 16th - 31st for coverage starting March 1st
IN ADDITION...
- IDAHO (YourHealthIdaho.org): If you completed your application by the 12/16 deadline, you still have until midnight Monday, 12/23 to actually select a policy.
If you still missed the deadline, you won't be eligible to enroll for ACA-compliant major medical coverage for the rest of the year unless you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) due to a qualify life event lke getting married/divorced, moving, giving birth/adopting a child, turning 26, becoming ineligible for Medicaid or losing your employer-sponsored health insurance coverage.
Note: There's a ton of junk plans and scam artists out there, especially these days. Fraudulent plans are being hawked endlessly via both robocalls, spam emails and fly-by-night websites. If you're enrolling online, make sure to use one of the official ACA exchange websites listed above.
You can also enroll in ACA-compliant policies directly via the insurance carrier's website as well, but the only way to be eligible for ACA tax credits is if you enroll on-exchange.
WHATEVER YOU DO, *DON'T* ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE *PASSIVELY* AUTO-RENEWED!
Again, the plans, pricing and tax credits you may be eligible for can change dramatically from year to year even if nothing significant changed at your end (income, household size, etc).
That means that anyone who doesn't log into their account at HealthCare.Gov, CoveredCA.com, etc. enter their current information and actively pick the plan they want next year could end up missing out on hundreds or thousands of dollars in financial help, a better-value plan, or both.
Therefore, I'll say it again: SHOP AROUND!