My income is less than 400% of the FPL and I smoke. Will the tobacco surcharge to the premium be covered by my premium tax credit?
No. A tobacco surcharge is not covered by the health insurance premium tax credits. The premium tax credit will reduce what you have to pay for the regular health insurance premium, but you will have to pay the entire additional tobacco surcharge. For example, if the regular premium for a policy is $200 per month and you qualify for a premium tax credit of $75 but you also use tobacco and so would be subject to a 50% tobacco use surcharge, you would have to pay $225 for that policy ($200 for the regular premium minus $75 for your premium tax credit plus $100 for the tobacco surcharge.)
