4 New Opportunities For Health Insurance Before Age 65 #39
Do you have your health insurance figured out for 2021? What are your plans for health insurance as you head into retirement? Health care has been a huge topic in the news especially with the impact that COVID-19 has had on our country and our world. With the recent passage of the American Rescue Plan, Congress has provided some helpful avenues for people to get better coverage when it comes to health insurance.
The American Rescue Plan is a $1.9 trillion coronavirus rescue package designed to facilitate the United States’ recovery from the devastating economic and health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The nearly $2 trillion price tag on this economic rescue legislation makes it one of the most expensive in U.S. history.
You don’t need to follow politics or understand all the ins and outs of legislation to get access to these new programs. Have a pen and paper ready as we dive into several new opportunities for health insurance that you can access before age 65 - you don’t want to miss a minute of this helpful episode!
You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in...
How does the American Rescue Plan impact you? [1:30]
What is a premium tax credit? [2:45]
How to qualify for the Premium Silver Plan [7:45]
How COBRA can help people who are unemployed [9:45]
Forgiveness of excess tax payment [11:20]
The Premium Tax Credit
Did you know that one of the best ways to save on health care costs is to secure a premium tax credit? While it sounds complex and confusing, a premium tax credit is just a refundable tax credit designed to help eligible individuals and families with low or moderate income afford health insurance purchased through the Exchange. The size of your premium tax credit is based on a sliding scale. Those who have a lower income get a larger credit to help cover the cost of their insurance. To learn more about the premium tax credit and how you can reduce your health care costs, make sure to listen to this episode.
COBRA
Another significant way that many Americans use to pay for their health coverage is the COBRA program. Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) gives workers and their families who lose their health benefits the right to choose to continue group health benefits provided by their group health plan for limited periods of time under certain circumstances such as voluntary or involuntary job loss, reduction in the hours worked, transition between jobs, death, divorce, and other life events.
With the passage of the American Rescue Plan, there are new provisions that create a valuable benefit for employees who have lost healthcare coverage due to an involuntary termination or reduction in hours — up to 6 months of free COBRA coverage for the employee and his or her qualified beneficiaries.
Join me on this episode as I expand on COBRA and other helpful resources that people like you can use to get the access you need to critical health care insurance.