Yes. A person receiving an advanced premium tax credit has a 90-day grace period to pay all premiums that are owed. If the amount owed for all outstanding premium payments is not paid in full by the end of the grace period, the insurer can terminate coverage. The insurer would then have to return funds it received from the federal government for all but the first 30 days of the grace period.
If you are receiving advanced premium tax credits, the insurer is required to pay your claims during the first 30 days of the grace period. After that, during the second and third month of the grace period, the insurer is allowed to hold your claims and only pay them if and when you get caught up in your premium payments.
The answer depends on whether you are receiving advanced premium tax credits. For people receiving advanced premium tax credits, if a payment due date is missed, insurers must provide a 90-day grace period during which consumers can bring their premium payments up to date and avoid having their coverage terminated. However, the grace period only applies if an individual has paid at least one month’s premium.
If, by the end of the 90-day grace period, the amount owed for all outstanding premium payments is not paid in full, the insurer can terminate coverage.
In addition, during the first 30 days of the grace period, the insurer must continue to pay claims. However, after the first 30 days of the grace period, the insurer can hold off paying any health care claims for care received during the grace period, which means the enrollee may be responsible to cover any health care services they receive during the second and third months if they fail to catch up on the amounts they owe before the end of the grace period. Insurers are supposed to inform health care providers when someone’s claims are being held. This could mean that providers will not provide care until the premiums are paid up so that they know they will be paid. People not receiving advanced premium tax credits are expected to get a much shorter grace period; currently, the general practice is 31 days but it may vary in each state.
Whether or not you are receiving premium tax credits, if you have coverage terminated for non-payment, this could affect your ability to buy coverage from that health insurer in the future. Insurers are allowed to require people who owe back-due premiums from the past 12 months to repay the premium debt before they will renew or sell you new coverage for the year.
States can prohibit or limit this practice by insurers. Contact the Marketplace and your state insurance regulator for more information.
Possibly. Federal rules require health plans offered through the Marketplace to accept premium and cost-sharing payments made on behalf of enrollees by the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, other Federal and State government programs that provide premium and cost-sharing support for specific individuals, and Indian tribes and tribal organizations. Federal rules discourage Marketplace plans from accepting third-party payments from hospitals, other healthcare providers, and other commercial entities. Check with your health plan for more information.
Finally, if you are a patient with end-stage renal disease undergoing kidney dialysis, you are eligible to enroll in Medicare. However, some dialysis facilities have offered to pay premiums for patients who elect Marketplace coverage instead of Medicare. If a dialysis facilities offers to pay your Marketplace premium, directly or through a charity, it is required to first check with the Marketplace insurer to verify that it will accept this third party payment. In addition, the dialysis facility must disclose other important information to you, including about the potential for gaps in coverage and penalties if Medicare enrollment is delayed. Dialysis patients should contact a Marketplace navigator program or your state’s Senior Health Insurance Assistance Program, which provides information, counseling, and enrollment assistance for people eligible for Medicare.
At least within the individual-market Marketplace, insurers are required to accept money orders and pre-paid debit cards. They do not have to accept credit card or debit card payments unless states make that a requirement, although many insurers currently accept all of these forms of payment. Therefore, it may vary from state to state and between insurers.
No. Insurers offering coverage in the individual-market exchange or Marketplace are required to provide a variety of payment methods and cannot require a consumer to pay by automatic bank withdrawals (sometimes called electronic funds transfers, or EFT.) Federal rules require the insurer to accept paper checks, cashier’s checks, money orders, and all general-purpose pre-paid debit cards, as well as EFT. These methods must be available to consumers for both the initial premium payment (at enrollment) and ongoing payments.
No, in most states you will make your premium payments directly to the health insurance company. Once you’ve selected your plan, the Marketplace will direct you to your insurance company’s website to make the initial premium payment. Insurance companies must accept different forms of payment and they cannot discriminate against consumers who do not have credit cards or bank accounts. The insurance company must receive and process your payment at least one day before coverage begins. Make sure you understand your insurance company’s payment requirements and deadlines and follow them so your coverage begins on time. Your enrollment in the health plan is not complete until the insurance company receives your first premium payment.
Note that if you have qualified to receive an advanced premium tax credit, the government will pay the credit directly to your insurer and you will pay the remainder of the premium directly to the insurer.
Yes, in most states you can. Insurers are allowed to increase premiums by up to 50% more for people who use tobacco, although many insurers apply a lower surcharge for tobacco use. If you qualify for premium tax credits, this tobacco surcharge will not be covered by the tax credit. States are allowed to limit tobacco surcharges and a few have decided to prohibit tobacco rating by health insurers.
Family premiums will reflect the composition of family members, their ages and their tobacco use. To compute a “family premium,” insurers will add together a separate premium for each adult age 21 and older. In addition, insurers can charge a separate premium for up to three children under age 21. In your example, your family premium will reflect three adult premiums and three child premiums.
Yes, in most states you can, within limits. Federal rules allow insurers to charge older adults (e.g., in their sixties) up to three times the premium they would charge younger adults (e.g., in their early twenties). This limit on age rating applies to all non-group and small-group health insurance policies, whether sold in the Marketplace or outside of the Marketplace. Some states prohibit insurers from adjusting premiums for age, or limit the age adjustment to less than three-to-one.