Did you or a loved one lose health insurance coverage in the last few weeks? You might still be able to get insured under special enrollment if you have a qualifying life event.
Every health insurance provider has different requirements to get insured, but they all follow the same set of guidelines put in place by the Federal Government under the Affordable Care Act.
Here are the most common reasons for loss of coverage and the documents and/or requirements needed:
- Termination of employer contributions
Requirement: Letter from employer to verify termination
- Exhaustion of COBRA coverage
Requirement: Certificate of Creditable Coverage and/or COBRA term letter (proof of prior health care coverage)
- Loss of employer sponsored health insurance as a result of termination of employment
Requirement: Termination of coverage letter
- Termination of short term medical plan
Requirement: Termination of coverage letter
- Divorce or legal separation (loss of coverage under spouse’s health insurance)
Requirement: Certificate of Creditable Coverage (proof of prior health care coverage)
- No longer eligible as a dependent due to age
Requirements: Letter from carrier indicating dependent is no longer an eligible dependent
- Death of a spouse (loss of coverage under spouse’s health insurance)
Requirement: Termination of coverage letter
- Spouses employment terminates (loss of coverage under spouse’s health insurance)
Requirement: Certificate of Creditable Coverage and/or Term Letter (proof of prior health care coverage)
- Employer reduced working hours (no longer eligible for group coverage)
Requirement: Letter from employer to verify
- Current plan change to eliminate coverage for certain groups (e.g. part time workers)
Requirement: Letter from employer to verify
- Group coverage terminates due to non-payment of premium – Employees can use this as a QLE
Requirement: Letter from employer to verify
- There is a health claim that will meet or exceed the plan’s lifetime limit on all benefits
Requirement: Explanation of benefit validating lifetime benefit met
- 2014 Renewal
Requirement: Renewal letter from existing carrier
- Non payment of premium, misrepresentation or fraud
Requirement: Reinstatement denial letter or rescission letter
- Relocation/ Move
Requirement: One of the following is required to validate coverage is in force:
- Other carrier information:
- Name of carrier and phone number
- Effective date
- Termination date
- Policy number
- Type of coverage
- EOB with Effective date and termination date of coverage
One of the following is also required:
- Proof of new residence (e.g. mortgage document or rental agreement)
- Driver’s license with current residence
- Utility bill with current residence
Some of these requirements are easily obtainable whereas others are a little more difficult. The main problem at the moment is that the health insurance company or marketplace will request a copy of your Certificate of Prior Coverage (COC), but you won’t be issued this document until your previous plan has been terminated. It can take up to a month to get this document from your previous carrier.
Some insurance companies are putting a time limit of 15 days to provide this document. This is not a realistic time frame. If you are applying for a health insurance policy on the exchange, you can’t submit your application until you lose your current coverage. Then, your new plan will start the following month. This is not ideal because you could end up with a gap in coverage.
Here at Nefouse & Associates, we will look for other documentation that will satisfy the insurance companies. Tackling individual health plans off of open enrollment can be a difficult and stressful task. Let the experts at Nefouse & Associates take the stress off of you. Call us today at (800) 846-8615!
