Once the Special Enrollment Period started on February 1st, 2022, anyone looking to enroll in or change their health insurance must now have a qualifying life event to do so. A qualifying life event is a major life event that must occur within the last 60 days in order to be eligible to apply for health insurance until the next Open Enrollment Period starting November 1st, 2022 for coverage as early as January 1st, 2023.

Standard qualifying life events for people to be eligible to change their health insurance include a recent move, loss of employer-sponsored coverage, release from Medi-Cal, marriage, divorce, childbirth, COBRA expiration, etc. Covered CA includes additional qualifying life events not listed when you apply direct-to-carrier.

Covered CA Unique Qualifying Life Events

  • COVID-19 Pandemic Health Emergency (ends April 16th, 2022) – this qualifying life event will end on April 16th as defined by the Health and Human Services Agency
  • Loss of Job or Income
  • Earn less than 150% of the Federal Poverty Level (individual earning less than $19,320 per year, household of 2 earning less than $26,130, household of 3 earning less than $32,940, house of 4 earning less than $39,750)
  • Paid the tax penalty for not having health insurance in 2021 (paid at least a part of the Individual Shared Responsibility Penalty to the Franchise Tax Board in the past 60 days.
  • Newly Qualified for App-Based Driver Stipend (e.g. Uber, Lyft, GrubHub)

If you have any questions about your eligibility to change your insurance during this Special Enrollment Period, please do not hesitate to contact us for further assistance. At Solid Health Insurance, we strive to help find our clients the right health, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance that best fits their medical needs and budget. Please contact us at 310-909-6135 or email us at info@solidhealthinsurance.com for us to better assist you.