Health insurance is now available to more Americans than ever before. Subsidized options are easily available to low-income individuals and families. In the past, many people took the risk of not being insured, but with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) you can be fined if you don't have qualified health care insurance. Instead of paying a fine, people who have not been able to afford insurance before are looking for affordable medical insurance options.
While some may be asking themselves if it would it be cheaper to just pay the fine, statistics show that more Americans have health insurance now than before the ACA was enacted. There are several reasons why more people have insurance now, but one is certainly the increase in affordable health plan options, including subsidized, or tax credits, health insurance purchased through one of the state exchanges. Compliant insurance can also be purchased privately. The options available to you depend primarily on your income level.
Low Income: If your income is 100 to 400 percent of the national poverty rate ($11,490 - $45,960) for a single person, you may qualify for subsidized health insurance. In many cases this is not free health insurance but subsidized. This means you can get bronze-level health insurance for about $2570 per year through one of the state exchanges. Extremely low-income individuals and elderly persons often qualify for Medicare. If you paid the fine for 2014 you may still qualify for insurance via an exchange, even if it is not during the open-enrollment period, to avoid the fee in 2015.
Best Options for Low-Income Earners: Medicare, state exchange or fine exemption
Middle Income: If your income is above the threshold of $45,960 (adjusted), you will not qualify for subsidized health insurance. Those above the poverty rate can still shop for insurance via an exchange but will not benefit from subsidies. However, income thresholds change depending on household size, so it is worth finding out if you qualify. Individuals can also shop for insurance through one of the major carriers, including those listed in this review, such as Humana, Kaiser Permanente or Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS), depending on what is available in your area. In most cases you can expect to pay about $300 to $600 per month in premiums for individual insurance. If you don't know if your income qualifies for subsidies, you can use one of the exchange calculators to help you figure that out. Another option for healthy mid-income individuals is high-deductible health plans. These plans have a deductible of up to $6,600, but will have a lower monthly premium and will help you pay major expenses.
Best Options for Mid-Income: Individual health insurance (lowest-option) or high-deductible health plans.
High Income: Those with a high income are facing a different problem. Many who have high incomes didn't purchase insurance in the past; they just paid health care expenses as needed. Paying two percent of a high income for the penalty can be a rather large sum for high-income persons. In this case, it might be cheaper to just buy qualifying health insurance. If you are in good health, you might want to choose the lowest qualifying plan. If you have ongoing health issues, you may as well bite the bullet and choose a more exhaustive plan and lower your out-of-pocket expenses.
Best Options for High-Income: A low-cost qualifying plan for healthy people or more comprehensive plan for those with larger health expenses.
Key Numbers to Consider:
Average bronze-level health insurance plan: $2,570 per year for individual insurance.
Shared responsibility payment: $325 per adult and $162.50 per child (up to $975 for a family), or 2 percent of your household income, above the tax return filing threshold for your filing status – whichever is greater.
Cost of non-subsidized, individual health insurance: $300 - $600 per month, or $3,600 - $7,200 per year.
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