HOW ALMOST 12 MILLION AMERICANS NOW HAVE AFFORDABLE HEALTH INSURANCE, OPTIONS FOR 9M WHO DO NOT! (1094 hits)
Almost 12 Million Americans Stand to Gain Financial Help Buying Health Coverage This Year, But May Not Know It By Kathryn Martin, Acting Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation at HHS
Summary:
Research shows that about half of the remaining uninsured don’t know that premium tax credits are available to keep coverage affordable.
Nobody likes to leave money on the table. But what if you don’t know you are doing it? That is what is happening to millions of Americans who are likely eligible for financial help when buying health insurance. That includes millions of people already buying coverage, who don’t know that they could get a better deal by shopping on HealthCare.gov. And it includes millions of uninsured Americans. Research shows that about half of the remaining uninsured don’t know that premium tax credits are available to keep coverage affordable.1
Already, about 8.8 million Americans who buy health insurance through HealthCare.gov receive premium tax credits to help keep their coverage affordable. Across the country, many more are eligible for help, including:
•Current HealthCare.gov consumers: Almost 300,000 HealthCare.gov consumers who didn’t get premium tax credits last year could be eligible for premium tax credits in 2017, even if their income remains the same, because financial assistance moves along with rates. That’s more than one in five currently unsubsidized HealthCare.gov consumers.
•Off-Marketplace individual consumers: About 2.5 million Americans who currently pay full price for individual coverage off-Marketplace could be eligible for premium tax credits if they purchase a 2017 plan through HealthCare.gov instead.