The deadline to sign up for the new stimulus update which gives free healthcare for 6 months is August 15th so don’t miss it.
Today, we wanted to provide you with a quick stimulus update that was part of the Democrats’ $1.9 trillion rescue package that went into effect in March.
The same plan that gave $1,400 stimulus checks and monthly child tax care payments was just updated to now provide completely free healthcare plans for 6 months.
Let’s go ahead and dive in!
Who Qualifies For This New Stimulus Update
In short, if you received or were approved for unemployment benefits in 2021…
…you are automatically eligible to receive free healthcare coverage for the rest of the year by visiting the healthcare marketplace – healthcare.gov.
It doesn’t matter if you received 1 payment, 2 payments, or 20 payments.
Even if you are currently working or off of unemployment, you could still qualify.
According to recent government reports, almost 3.5 million people are actively on unemployment, with thousands of new applications coming in weekly.
Almost 11 million people were unemployed in January of this year.
This means, there are literally millions of Americans who can benefit from getting free healthcare until the end of the year.
According to the Department of Health and Human Services, three out of five eligible uninsured Americans will be eligible for the $0 healthcare plans.
And, an average of four out of five current consumers will be able to find a policy for $10 or less per month.
There are typically income limits to qualify for Obamacare coverage, but there is no income requirement to qualify here.
The only caveat is that you generally don’t qualify for any subsidies if you are able to get healthcare provided to you by your employer.
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, who is the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said the following:
“We are doing everything we can to remove financial barriers to comprehensive health care.”
She then added that:
“The American Rescue Plan provides consumers with additional savings and will make coverage even more attainable for those most in need.”
If you don’t qualify because you did not receive unemployment payments, we will provide a few unknown options for you at the end of the post.
How to Sign Up
If you qualify, you will need to visit the revised portal on healthcare,gov website.
And then, submit a new application where you enter personal details and information on your current employment situation or update your existing application.
Say you’ve used healthcare.gov in the past and already have a login or are already receiving healthcare coverage through healthcare.gov…
…you will want to log in and select “report a life change.”
You’d just have to demonstrate that you were indeed eligible for unemployment benefits.
Once, you’ve updated your application, you will be able to see and search for the new options available to you.
The $0 plans are not considered high-end plans but are not considered low-end plans either.
They are right in the middle “silver” plans and typically also come with very low, or not deductible at all, making them even more attractive.
For 2021, a typical Obamacare premium is about $452 a month, which is a huge saving for those who were paying out of pocket or could not afford it at all.
The plans became available on June 1st and the enrollment period ends on August 15th.
So don’t wait – sign up as soon as possible if you received or were approved from unemployment benefits this year.
If you need help signing up, you can call the Marketplace Call Center at 1-800-318-2596 or by visiting healthcare.gov/find-assistance.
Note that some states, like California, do not use the Affordable Care Act Exchange and use their own exchange with their own timetables.
If you live in a state such as this, you should be able to sign up or update your information to $0 or very low-cost options in your state.
Speaking of state taxes, you also might want to check our posts about the tax-free states and top 10 states with the worst property taxes.
If that interests you, then be sure to read them next.
What If You Don’t Qualify For This New Stimulus Update?
Additionally, we also want to make you aware of two other healthcare updates in case you were not aware or do not qualify.
1. Obamacare plans have long been criticized for being too expensive.
To help, the Affordable Care Act made a change to provide subsidies where those with low income can get completely free healthcare.
And, others will pay no more than 8.5% of your total income towards healthcare premiums.
2. Those with income 400% above the poverty level can now receive subsidies for the first time as well.
The enrollment for these subsidies started on February 15th and was recently extended by three months to August 15th to give you more time to apply.
According to, Kaiser Family Foundation, “The relief bill broadened availability to 21.8 million people, including both the insured and uninsured.”
In general, many of us were not aware of the provided subsidies.
So to boost awareness, Biden has doubled the advertising budget to 100 million dollars and has a new ad circulating that details the availability of no-cost or low-cost plans.
There are so many tax deductions and tax credits that you can take advantage of to save more on your taxes.
But to ensure your taxes are done and filed the right way, let the professionals help you!
Go ahead and work with our tax preparation, tax planning, and tax resolution services today.