Healthcare Exchange Deadlines

Time is rapidly running out! Whether you’re personally planning to sign up or you want your employees to sign up for California’s CoveredCA healthcare exchange, it’s time to do it. The current enrollment period ends March 31, 2014… that’s only a week away.

Once this deadline passes, you’ll need to wait for the next open enrollment period just like any other insurance plan. The government’s next open enrollment period will be November 1^st through February 15^th. During open enrollment periods you can start, stop, or change your coverage.

Outside of open enrollment periods, the only way you can change your coverage is to have a “qualifying event.” A qualifying event is something like marriage, divorce, a birth or adoption of a child, or loss of a job. Even then, you only have 30 days from the date of the qualifying event to make any change to your insurance.

Unlike company group insurance plans that typically start on the day the company renews or starts the policy, it’s a little different with the government’s coverage. During open enrollment periods with CoveredCA, the date your coverage begins depends on the day of the month when you sign up. If you enroll between the 1^st and the 15^th, your coverage would begin on the first of the next month (i.e., enrolling on December 7^th would mean coverage would begin January 1^st). If you enroll between the 16^th and last day of the month, your coverage would begin the “second” month (i.e., enrolling on December 18^th would mean coverage would begin February 1^st).

If you don’t have group insurance for your employees, encourage them to sign up this week for the government’s plan so they have coverage!