I missed Open Enrollment. Can I still buy health insurance this year?
In response to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) for the Health Insurance Marketplace. This SEP is open to all Marketplace-eligible individuals and families who are submitting new applications or updating existing applications. This SEP runs through August 15, 2021.
This SEP opportunity does not involve any new application questions, or require you to provide any new information not otherwise required to enroll in coverage. In addition, you will not need to provide any documentation of a qualifying life event (for example, loss of a job or birth of a child), which is typically required for SEP eligibility.
You may also be eligible for more subsidies to help lower your monthly payments. Depending on your income and family size, you may qualify for extra savings of as much as $100 per person, per month. You may even discover that you now qualify for subsidies that you weren’t eligible for before!