COBRA, HIPAA & Continuation of Health CARE Coverage
Americans have long had Federal protection from risk of being Uninsured through loss of Employment. Both COBRA & HIPAA allow Employees to KEEP their Employer-Sponsored Health Plan at a higher cost.
Why is it at a higher cost for the same Coverage?
With Employee Benefits through Employer-Sponsored Health Plans, the Company pays a portion of your Health Insurance Premiums.
When Coverage ends & the Individual elects to keep their Coverage they must pay BOTH the Employee portion AND the Employer Portion of the Monthly Premium, making Coverage Available but not necessarily Affordable.
Special Election Periods have always been available in this instance,
Insurance Companies can & do sell policies 12 months a year & it does appear that this also holds true for the Health Insurance Marketplace under ObamaCARE despite the current President's statement that there would be no SEP for Loss of Employment due to Covid-19.
The main question to consider is the question of Cost.
The Health Insurance Marketplace is the Coverage of Last Resort for people like myself who are 1099 Self-Employed, who are Part-time or who are otherwise not eligible for Employee Benefits.
Under ObamaCARE, most Enrollees were Eligible for Subsidies to help pay Monthly Premiums.
One of the first attacks on the Affordable Care Act by the Trump Administration was to change the Subsidies to Tax Credits.
While it may seem like a matter of semantics between Subsidies & Tax Credits, there is actually a difference as I found out in a hurry when I tried to Enroll in a Marketplace Plan for my own personal Coverage.
Congressional Leaders have made a valiant effort to provide relief to Americans during this Global Health Crisis, sometimes facing tremendous backlash online from the Trumplicans.
Here in Texas, it appears that the State who has been disgracefully leading the way to "Repeal & Replace ObamaCARE" by trying to have the Affordable CARE Act certified as "Unconstitutional" also has a sizable Rainy-Day Fund.
Other than Hurricane Harvey, I cannot think of a rainier day in this country than what we're living through now.
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