ObamaCare which is also known as the Affordable Care Act in the US is a health insurance plan that provides medical coverages to people who are from low-income households and extremely beneficial for people who are not able to afford their medical expenses due to poor financial conditions. In order to get yourself registered under Obamacare, you can either visit a prominent insurance agent in Texas, or you just have to log in to the marketplace website of the government and fill in your details to register yourself. Of course, there are various other formalities as well for you to get registered in the marketplace and we will be discussing them in this article.
When to Apply for ObamaCare
You must know the fact that you cannot apply for Obamacare insurance plans all throughout the year as you can apply only during a certain time period which is known as the Open Enrollment Period which starts on the 1st of November every year for the plans that take effect from January the next year. The deadline to apply for the plan is December 15th which might slightly differ in some states.
There is a period called the Special Enrollment Period which is outside of the dated window mentioned above in which you can buy a marketplace plan if you either lose your current health insurance plan or have an addition of a new member in your family.
Preparing yourself before the enrollment period
If the enrollment is in the near future and you are waiting for it to apply for the ObamaCare, you must firstly familiarize yourself with the existing plans, their requirements and your eligibility for those plans. There are various plans that ObamaCare offers which might definitely sound similar and confusing to you so better to go through each of them carefully so that you select the best plan for yourself. The plans range between $150 to $600 but this is the plan of the price which is excluded from their other expenses you might have to pay. All the price details are mentioned on the marketplace website which you can go through thoroughly while waiting for your enrollment period.
Based on your monthly or yearly income, you might be eligible for subsidy in premium plans as well so you must check your tax returns in advance to find out your gross income so that you might find out whether you are eligible for a subsidy or not. When you will keep this information handy well in advance, it will help you a lot in registering yourself quickly once you are in the enrollment period.
How to apply for ObamaCare
The best, easiest and fastest way to apply for ObamaCare is by visiting the HealthCare.gov website though it is not the only way to apply to ObamaCare. You can apply via email or phone as well but that will take a lot of time and other formalities. Once you are on the marketplace website, you need to provide basic information like Name, Address, family size and household income so that the marketplace can show you the relevant plans based on your details. You can also check your eligibility for tax credits and avail it on the marketplace website.
States like California, Colorado, New York, Washington etc have their own health insurance exchanges and as soon as you fill your state, you will be redirected to your state’s exchange if available. You can also apply for ObamaCare as an immigrant and the details are mentioned in the marketplace website. Also, you can apply for Obamacare via different insurance companies