Those Affordable Care Act compliant health plans first became available to consumers on January 1st, 2014. These health insurance marketplace plans are available either through healthcare.gov, or through local state marketplaces depending on whether the state created their own or not. All available plans are available for comparison on our partner site HealthPocket.com. Plans are available to the general market during the Open Enrollment Period which lasts from November 1st to December 15th each year. If you need to enroll in an ACA health plan outside of Open Enrollment, you may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period depending on your life circumstances.
SPECIAL ENROLLMENT PERIODS
If you do not sign up for health insurance during the Open Enrollment Period that spans from November 1st to December 15th, you must wait until the next open enrollment period unless you have a qualifying event that makes you eligible for a Special Enrollment Period (SEP).
If you have a qualifying event, you can purchase health insurance or change your existing coverage without waiting until the next open enrollment. If you do not have a qualifying event, but do not qualify for a Special Enrollment Period than you should consider a Short Term Health Insurance Plan. In most states these Short Term Plans can help consumers span the gap to Open Enrollment.
