People who’ve lost their workplace health insurance during the coronavirus outbreak may qualify for private coverage through Obamacare, along with generous subsidies, despite President Donald Trump’s decision last week not to re-open signups for everyone. Many may also qualify for free or low-cost coverage under Medicaid, especially in the two-thirds of states that joined Obamacare’s expansion of the low-income health care program.
Some states that depend on Healthcare.gov are trying to broadcast these options to their citizens — through media campaigns, the governors’ microphones, social media and patient groups — while advocates say the federal government needs to bring in money and a marketing plan to help.
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Ordinarily, people can only sign up for insurance during the regular open enrollment season — and the next one won’t happen until the fall. But when people have a change in their coverage from something like a job loss or big shift in income, they can still qualify for special enrollment.
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[Alternatively,] people who lose jobs can get COBRA, meaning they can extend their job-related insurance after being laid off. But that is massively expensive — particularly for anyone who has just lost their livelihood.
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In one odd twist, some of the working poor who normally can’t get Medicaid in states that didn’t expand might be able to qualify for Obamacare because aid they will get from the federal stimulus package might help them meet the income threshold. It’s an option that could be particularly helpful for swathes of working poor adults throughout the South — including people on the front lines of the disease now, people who can’t telecommute because they work as a store cashier or in a fast food restaurant.
From the article:
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