More than 139,000 people have signed up for healthcare through the state's insurance marketplace since the new and expanded financial help from the American Rescue Plan Act became available on April 12, according to Covered California.
Currently, a record 1.6 million people are enrolled in healthcare through the state’s marketplace.
But state officials say an important enrollment deadline is quickly approaching for those in need of affordable health care coverage.
“If you sign up by June 30, you can have coverage that goes live [on] July 1. If you wait until July, you don’t have coverage that starts in August,” Peter Lee told KNX.
“We want to make sure Californians know that this end of the month deadline matters because going uninsured doesn’t make sense.”
Lee is the executive director for California's health benefit exchange. Californians can shop for health plans and access available financial assistance using the Covered California service, including checking whether they qualify for no-cost Medi-Cal programs.
Covered California is also launching a new service that allows Californians who received unemployment insurance benefits at any point in 2021 to get health coverage for as low as $1 a month.
“The American Rescue Plan is making coverage more affordable than ever, and more and more Californians are getting high-quality coverage for just a dollar,” Lee said.
“The sooner you sign up, the sooner you can start saving and be covered, because we do not want anyone to be uninsured or leave money on the table.”
Usually, the exchange accepts new enrollees only during its annual open enrollment period as well as allowing people to join within 60 days of certain “qualifying life events.” A qualifying life event includes job loss, loss of employer health coverage, marriage, birth and adoption. California reopened its state exchange for health insurance in April following the passage of the American Rescue Plan.
According to research by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a non-profit research organization, "1.4 million uninsured people newly eligible for subsidized Marketplace coverage under the ARPA."
State officials hoped the new subsidies would encourage additional people to enroll, especially among those who lost their health insurance during the pandemic.
That includes people like Jack “Mitch” Huggins, a retired firefighter from Stockton. He lost his health insurance during the city’s bankruptcy proceedings. He said it’s cost him about $20,000 a year to buy coverage on his own. He wasn’t eligible for a federal subsidy in the past, but he is eligible under the new law. He said he will save about $1,000 a month on his premiums.
“I couldn’t believe it was true,” he said. “It’s going to be substantial savings to me and my wife.”
Californians can check if they are eligible for $1-a-month coverage by using Covered California’s quick calculator.
Users should enter their household income, ZIP code, household size and the age of each family member and note whether they received unemployment benefits. The calculator will show the cost of multiple health plans in their area.
Reporting was contributed by The Associated Press.