Can You Get Health Insurance Without a Social Security Number?
Posted: January 08, 2025
You can get health insurance without a Social Security number (SSN). If you or a family member doesn’t have an SSN for several reasons, yet you need health insurance, you may wonder if the lack of an SSN would be an obstacle. While you can still get health insurance, you’ll need to meet several conditions to get health insurance without an SSN.
Why a Social Security Number Is Needed
The health insurance marketplace requires an applicant’s SSN to confirm their legal presence in the United States and confirm their projected income matches the information from trusted sources, including Equifax Workforce Solutions, the Social Security Administration and the IRS.
You can still apply for health coverage if you don’t have an SSN if you’re lawfully present in the United States and one of the following is true:
- You’ve applied for an SSN.
- You don’t qualify for SSN because of your immigration status.
- You don’t wish to provide your SSN for religious reasons.
To be eligible to use the U.S. health coverage marketplace, you must:
- Live in the U.S.
- Be a United States national or citizen or be a non-citizen who is lawfully present in the United States.
- Not be incarcerated.
If you’ve confirmed you can apply for and get health insurance, you may still wonder whether you can add your undocumented family members to your health insurance. You can include family members who don’t have a Social Security number in your plan if they have lawful immigration status. You and your undocumented family members who don’t have SSNs have 90 days to provide appropriate documentation. Undocumented immigrants cannot get marketplace coverage. However, undocumented immigrants can apply on behalf of documented individuals.
Who Qualifies?
You qualify if you live in the U.S., are not incarcerated, and are a citizen or lawfully present. If you’re not a U.S. citizen but a documented immigrant, have applied for certain statuses or have employment authorization with certain statuses, you may qualify to get health insurance without an SSN. The following immigration statuses qualify for health insurance without SSN:
- Asylee
- Refugee
- Paroled in the U.S.
- Cuban/Haitian entrant
- Deferred action status
- Lawful temporary resident
- Lawful permanent resident
- Temporary protected status
- Battered spouse, child and parent
- Granted withholding of deportation
- Victim of trafficking and their spouse
- Individuals with non-immigrant status
- Conditional entrant granted before 1980
- Member of federally-recognized Indian tribe or American Indian born in Canada
How to Add a Newborn to Insurance Without an SSN
You don’t need an SSN to add your newborn to your existing health policy. Often, newborns don’t receive a Social Security number until several weeks after their birth. However, they must be enrolled as dependents within 27 days of birth. You add your newborn to get covered under your health insurance coverage.
Alternatives for Health Insurance Without an SSN
If you don’t have an SSN, you can choose from three main alternatives:
Indemnity Plan
An indemnity plan pays a fixed-dollar benefit for a specific service. For example, if you visit a doctor for a checkup, your indemnity plan might pay $150 for that visit and nothing more. If the doctor charges you more than $150, you’ll have to pay the balance out of pocket.
This type of plan allows you to visit any doctor you like. Indemnity plans mostly do not have deductibles. You don’t need an individual tax identification number (ITIN) or an SSN to apply for an indemnity plan, which makes it a good choice for individuals seeking health insurance without an ITIN or SSN.
Short-Term Health Insurance
Another alternative for health insurance without SSN is short-term health insurance. This is a medical policy designated to last less than 12 months. Many states, however, allow for up to three years. Short-term health insurance generally excludes preexisting conditions. Any health condition diagnosed or treated during the term is covered. You have to reapply at the end of each term.
Short-term health insurance covers the following:
- Laboratory work and imaging
- Doctor visits and hospital stays
- Diagnostic testing and cancer screening
- ER visits, ambulance service and emergency services
Like indemnity plans, short-term health insurance also doesn’t require an ITIN.
Temporary Travel Medical Insurance
This type of insurance is ideal for individuals who have a visa or will soon have one. This insurance protects you against unexpected injuries or illnesses during travel abroad. When you present a claim, the visa will be your supporting documentation to prove your lawful presence in the United States. Travel medical insurance is temporary and doesn’t cover chronic or preexisting health conditions.
Limitations of Health Insurance Without an SSN
Alternatives for health insurance without an SSN allow you to access health coverage when needed. However, there are limitations you should know about before applying. These limitations include:
- No coverage for pregnancy or childbirth
- No prescription insurance
- Have limited preventive care benefits
- May have waiting periods for specific conditions
- May exclude certain situations
- Limited coverage for preexisting conditions
Some states don’t allow alternative health insurance to be sold to their residents:
- California
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Idaho
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Minnesota
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Washington
A few states from the list only allow indemnity plans to be sold to their residents.
Be sure to read the exclusions and limitations of the policy you plan to buy before you buy.
Your Next Steps
Not having an SSN should not prevent you from getting health insurance coverage. Take the following steps to get one:
- Know the requirements: Although they might ask for it, insurance companies in most states do not require an SSN. Find out the applicable laws in your state or connect with Health for California for applicable laws and regulations in the state of California.
- You can use an ITIN: Some insurance companies will allow you to apply using your ITIN instead of an SSN. The focus is on your current residence and not on the SSN.
- Check for alternatives: Try an insurance alternative that does not require an SSN if you fail to get health insurance because you lack a Social Security number.
Get Help From HFC if You Don’t Have an SSN
People without a Social Security number can still get health insurance coverage. Some insurance companies will let you use your ITIN instead of an SSN, although this is also unnecessary. We can help you get health insurance coverage for you and your family. Please get in touch with us for help. At Health for California, we provide an easy-to-use online application platform.
