If you need to sign up or renew your health insurance through HealthCare.gov, you have until midnight tonight to do so. Mike Bertaut, a healthcare economist with Louisiana Blue, says for some people, there’s a very important change that will have a major impact on their budgets.
“If you were taking advantage of enhanced assistance, enhanced tax credits, when you buy on HealthCare.gov, those have been eliminated as of January 1st,” Bertaut said.
Bertaut says the elimination of the enhanced tax credits does not mean that there’s no assistance available for everyone.
“What it means, is certain populations of people that are upper income are going to notice that their federal assistance has either gone down pretty dramatically or disappeared,” Bertaut explained.
Bertaut says in order to buy health insurance on HealthCare.gov, there are a few requirements.
“HealthCare.gov is there for people who are not on Medicare, not on Medicaid and are not Medicaid eligible, or people who are not offered affordable coverage under the federal definition at their workplace,” Bertaut said.
New coverage or changes to existing coverage will take effect February 1st.