Need Health Insurance? Open Enrollment Ends 12/15!
Open enrollment season is upon us, folks. If you’re new to freelancing or otherwise unfamiliar with open enrollment, it is the one time during the year that Americans can buy health insurance for the next year without having a qualifying life event (like losing your existing health insurance).
When is Open Enrollment?
Nationally, open enrollment runs from November 1, 2020 to December 15, 2020, but each state gets to decide whether to extend the deadline for their residents. Most states stay with the December 15 deadline, but here are the deadlines for a few states that chose a longer open enrollment period. You can find the exact deadline for your state here.
What Kinds of Health Insurance Can I Buy?
There are a lot of different health insurance coverage structures. Here are the most common ones, ranked from broadest coverage to narrowest. This order is also, generally, the most expensive monthly premiums to the least expensive (but you should calculate how much you expect to spend on services the plans don’t cover to estimate your actual monthly healthcare cost).
PPO: A “preferred provider organization.” This is the most flexible type of health insurance, since it pays for both in-network and out-of-network doctors, though in-network doctors are cheaper. It also lets you visit specialists and have lab work done without a referral.
POS: A “point of service” policy. This insurance pays for both in-network and out-of-network doctors, but you can only visit a specialist or have lab work done if you get a referral from your primary care physician.
EPO: An “exclusive provider organization”. A little less flexible than the PPO, an EPO also lets you visit specialists without a referral, but you will pay the full cost yourself if you visit an out-of-network doctor.
HMO: A “health maintenance organization.” This coverage is much less flexible, since it pays for services from in-network providers, often only within a specific state or region. You will pay the full cost yourself if you visit an out-of-network doctor. Further, you can only visit a specialist or have lab work done if you get a referral from your primary care physician.
Catastrophic: A policy that covers emergency medical expenses and some preventative healthcare. These plans are often short-term and sold to people who are under 30 years old or meet a hardship exemption.
Not every type will be sold on your state’s insurance marketplace. The most common marketplace insurance type is HMO, but it’s good to know which insurance fits your needs and your budget so you can seek those out specifically.
What Are Metal Tiers?
Each type of insurance (PPO, HMO, etc.) has levels called “metal tiers” that range from bronze to platinum. They sound like jewelry types, but really they refer to what metal jewelry you could buy if you weren’t spending that amount on your health insurance premium. Each metal tier offers you a different monthly payment in exchange for covering a different percent of your medical expenses.
Bronze, the lowest tier, has the cheapest monthly payments, since you promise to pay more of your healthcare expenses out of pocket. It can be a good choice if you are healthy and expect to have relatively few medical expenses. Platinum is the highest tier. It has the highest monthly payment, but it pays a greater percentage of your medical expenses. This is usually better for people who anticipate more doctors’ appointments or hospitalizations.
Where Do I Buy Health Insurance During Open Enrollment?
You have two options:
Visit the health insurance marketplace at https://www.healthcare.gov/, enter your state and contact details, and the site will guide you to the plans available in your state.
Google “health insurance [your state name]”. This can also turn up results from health insurance providers like Blue Cross Blue Shield who sell other health insurance plans to the public that are not listed on the marketplace, which are called “off marketplace plans”. Sometimes these plans offer better value in terms of coverage for cost. (Full disclosure: this is the option I chose.)
Do I Have to Buy During Open Enrollment?
If you don’t like any of your options or need a little more time to decide, there are other ways to get health insurance coverage aside from open enrollment. You can learn more about the full menu of your health insurance options as a freelancer here.
Have health insurance information you think freelancers should know? Leave a message in the comments or contact us directly!
Cover image by Miguel Á. Padriñán from Pexels
