How To Get Health Insurance Coverage

What is the Health Insurance Marketplace? Free or no cost insurance coverage in your area! Get help with applications, eligibility requirements and more on this guide covering all aspects of the health industry from individual plans to hospital stays.


How Does Health Insurance Coverage Look for 2023?

Health insurance is a type of insurance that covers the cost of an individual's medical and surgical expenses. Health insurance can be purchased from a Health Insurance Marketplace, such as Healthcare.gov, or from a private insurer. Health insurance plans typically have premiums, deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance. Premiums are the monthly payments that an individual makes to an insurance company for coverage. Deductibles are the amount of money that an insured individual must pay out-of-pocket before the insurer will start to make payments for covered services.

Copayments are fixed amounts that an insured individual pays for a covered service at the time of service. Coinsurance is the percentage of covered charges that an insured individual must pay after the deductible has been met. Health insurance plans may also have yearly out-of-pocket maximums, which is the most that an individual would have to pay in a year for covered services.


Government Funded Health Insurance Plans

Healthcare.gov is a website set up by the United States federal government to provide information on and enrollment in health insurance plans offered by participating providers. Healthcare.gov offers several different types of health insurance plans, including Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs), Preferred Provider Organizations (PPOs), and High-Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs). Individuals can compare plan options and costs on Healthcare.gov and enroll in a plan through the website.

Eligibility requirements for health insurance plans vary by state. In some states, all individuals are eligible for health insurance coverage through Healthcare.gov regardless of income or employment status. In other states, only individuals with incomes below a certain level or who are unemployed are eligible for coverage through Healthcare.gov. To find out if you are eligible for coverage through Healthcare.gov, visit the website and enter your state of residence into the "Get Coverage" tool.

No Cost Insurance Options

There are several ways to get free or no-cost health insurance coverage in the United States. One way to get free or no-cost health insurance is through Medicaid, which is a joint federal-state program that provides health insurance coverage to low-income individuals and families. Another way to get free or no-cost health insurance is through the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which is a federal-state program that provides health insurance coverage to children whose families do not qualify for Medicaid but cannot afford private health insurance coverage.

Finally, some states offer their own programs that provide free or no-cost health insurance coverage to low-income residents. To find out if you are eligible for free or no-cost health insurance through Medicaid, CHIP, or a state program, contact your state's Medicaid office or visit Healthcare.gov/lower-costs.

Finding the Best Health Insurance For You

Finding health insurance that fits your budget and needs can be a daunting task; fortunately, health insurance marketplaces like healthcare.gov offer a helpful way to compare plans from health insurance companies and find an individual health insurance plan that works for you. When browsing the health insurance marketplace choose from several health insurance companies to select a plan best suited for you and your health needs. It’s important to familiarize yourself with the type of coverage each company provides so you can decide which one best fits your lifestyle.

Healthcare.gov also offers free tools such as online calculators, cost comparison charts, side-by-side comparisons, glossaries and tutorials to help narrow down your choices by looking at factors such as coverage levels, premiums, out-of-pocket expenses and more.

When researching health insurance plans on the health insurance marketplace make sure to have information related to your income ready when applying so you can determine if you qualify for cost subsidies or other discounts. By utilizing these free health insurance finding tools available on the health insurance marketplace, you can rest assured knowing  that you are finding the most affordable health insurance option on the market.