Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator
December 15th, 2014 at midnight is the deadline to ensure health insurance coverage is effective by the first of the year 2015. Do not delay in figuring out your options.
The Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator is easy to use irrespective of the state that one resides in. It is provided by the most reputable ‘The Henry Kaiser J Family Foundation‘. Jeffrey Young at the Huffington Post puts it most succinctly.
Don’t delay!
If you’re one of these people and don’t visit HealthCare.gov or your state’s exchange, you won’t be able to get a new plan until February, and the last chance to choose a plan for any part of next year is Feb. 15 (except under special circumstances). Five state’s exchanges have different deadlines: Dec. 18 in Maryland and Dec. 23 in Idaho, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Washington state. These deadlines only apply to people who buy health insurance through an exchange, a broker or directly from an insurer — not those who get health benefits from their jobs or a government program like Medicare or Medicaid.
There are a lot of factors to consider, like what doctors and hospitals you can access, what drugs and medical services are covered, how much you’ll have to pay out of pocket when you get health care, and what the monthly premium is. Sorry — there will be some math.
To prepare, you should have some information and documentation handy, like your family members’ Social Security numbers and last year’s tax returns or something else to verify your income, which is how subsidies are calculated.
It is important to weigh all the options. All plans provide a minimum level of care that includes free screenings at no additional expense. No one can be denied coverage for any pre-existing condition. No insurance plan can have some maximum pay out. Women cannot be charged more than men for the same plan. None of these insurance plans can be rescinded.
You can get quick access to cost and subsidies with the Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator here.