13 Nov Five Tips For Shopping For Health Insurance
Do you need health insurance tips? This year’s Open Enrollment Period is November 8th to December 15th. That means there are only 45 days to shop for coverage. Compared to years past, this enrollment period is shorter. This shorter period is not the only aspect that has changed this year.
Although Congress has pushed for the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, it remains in effect. If you are not covered through your job or a government program, you are still able to get coverage. If you meet income eligibility requirements, you will receive aid from the federal government to afford your premium and even other out-of-pocket costs. If you receive premium assistance in the form of tax credits, then you will probably not have to pay more because as premiums go up.
The requirement for most people to have insurance is still in effect. The fine for not having insurance in 2017 and 2018 is the greater of $695 or 2.5 percent of your income. Fortunately, you can claim an exemption from the fine if you demonstrate that you cannot afford insurance in your area. The IRS stated it would start rejecting returns filed in 2018 that don’t indicate whether the taxpayer had health insurance. Therefore, make sure you specify when filing your taxes this year! Larger employers that have 50 or more full-time workers are required to offer coverage to their workers or pay the penalty. The coverage provided by employers must be comprehensive and affordable.
As always, It’s important to shop around and compare options – especially this year. To begin with, you need to pick a plan yourself so that the marketplace doesn’t automatically enroll you for 2018 coverage. The auto-renewal date this year is expected to be December 16th. If you are assigned a plan you don’t like, then you won’t be able to change it until the 2019 Open Enrollment season.
This year the premiums are going up. Some states have instructed insurers to put additional costs on the mid-level plans that cover about 70% of an average person’s medical costs. Additionally, the price increase for Silver plans may drive up the tax credits that help Americans pay premiums. Try looking beyond the official federal and state marketplaces! Some states ordered insurers to load additional costs only onto marketplace plans; therefore, the marketplace plans might cost less.
AWS cares about your wellbeing and wants to ensure that you are knowledgeable on all topics surrounding insurance. For an experienced insurance broker’s help with the confusion surrounding health insurance, don’t hesitate to call AWS.
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