At our agency we have seen a rise in the number of folks who are looking for health insurance right now since their short term medical insurance ended. None of them realized that they did not have ACA compliant health insurance. This means that they do not have a qualifying event to sign up for health insurance and cannot sign up for an ACA complaint health insurance plan.
ACA compliant health insurance is referred to as Obamacare and this health insurance covers the 10 essential health benefits and covers pre-existing conditions.
One of the folks told us that he thought he found a good deal when he signed up and didn’t really know it was even a short term medical plan. This is particularly worrisome since the health issues he was diagnosed with while he was on the plan are not covered on a new short term medical plan (they are now a pre-existing condition). Since he is responsible for his own health insurance, he will have to wait until Open Enrollment to sign up for an ACA compliant plan to help him.
Short term medical plans do have a place for the right situation. For example, a healthy person needs coverage for 30 days while waiting for their work benefits to begin. They are just not the deal some folks think they are.
Remember, there are no deals when it comes to health insurance premiums.