California Health Care
If you’re self-employed, a considerable financial concern will be finding affordable California self-employed health insurance coverage. Though the cost of health insurance for self-employed workers always seems to be rising, you may be able to deduct 100% of health insurance premiums you pay for yourself, your dependents and your spouse, up to set limits.
Use this guide to help you navigate your options for California health insurance as a self-employed worker or small business owner. We can help you find the affordable health insurance you need to protect your health and the health of your loved ones.
Before you can find the best health insurance plan for you, you need to determine whether you need self-employed health insurance coverage or small business health insurance coverage.
If you are a self-employed worker, you can enroll in high-quality, flexible individual health insurance coverage. You are considered a self-employed individual if you have a business that makes money but...
Millions of Americans have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, physically, emotionally and financially. According to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, over 9.5 million workers lost their jobs during the crisis, and 4 million of the unemployed have been out of work for half a year or longer.
In response to the pandemic, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan, and President Joe Biden recently signed the bill into law. The American Rescue Plan aims to bring temporary relief to individuals and businesses and help them recover from the pandemic’s economic impact. One component of the act focuses on improving access to affordable health insurance.
How does this plan affect your health care as a California resident? Let’s explore the American Rescue Plan and what it means for health insurance coverage in California.
On March 11, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP). This $1.9 trillion plan provides funding for various programs, businesses...
An app-based driver is someone who drives for a ride-hailing app like Lyft and Uber or other apps like Postmates, Instacart and DoorDash. Someone who works as a driver for one of these apps either provides pre-arranged transportation services or on-demand delivery services in a personal vehicle. Working as an app-based driver can be a great side gig for someone who wants to use their weekends or a few hours each weekday after their full-time job to earn some extra money.
If you are an Uber driver or Lyft driver or you want to become an app-based driver in California, you should know about CA Proposition 22.
Prop 22 in California was a ballot measure that determined ride-hailing companies should classify workers as independent contractors. The measure allows these companies to adopt the corresponding wage and labor policies. The initiative was voted on during the state election in November 2020.
CA Proposition 22 is an exception to Assembly Bill 5, which states that gig-economy workers m...
If you are enrolling yourself or your family in Covered California or in Medi-Cal, you no longer have to be concerned about that affecting citizenship or being a “Public Charge.”
The Public Charge ruling, which was of concern during the time of President Trump, has been rescinded by President Biden. This is no longer an issue and will not have any bearing on applications for citizenship.
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has stopped applying the 2019 Public Charge regulation to all pending applications and petitions. Purchasing insurance through Covered California and receiving financial help to pay for the insurance does not make an individual a “Public Charge”.
Also, Medi-Cal for adults or children is NO LONGER considered a public charge.
You may enroll through Covered California. You may enroll in Medi-Cal. Or, you may enroll a mixed family where adults are on Covered California and the children are enrolled in Medi-Cal. None of these would be consi...
Do you need supplemental insurance? The short answer is yes. Supplemental insurance is used to complement insurance plans that provide basic medical coverage. Supplemental coverage often refers to supplemental dental insurance and supplemental vision insurance. It can also cover expenses that your primary plan doesn’t cover, like coinsurance, copayments or deductibles.
If you have health insurance through your employer, you may think you don’t need to purchase supplemental insurance plans. Most people don’t realize their insurance is lacking until they receive a medical bill and find that a health care service isn’t covered.
Though many medical insurance plans leave much to be desired in the adequacy of their coverage, supplemental health plans like dental insurance and vision insurance can fill the gaps in your current coverage.
Why is having dental coverage important? Maybe you see dental insurance as just another bill to pay, but in truth, dental insurance is worth the small p...
After a year when health care remained top of mind across the nation, 2021 should be another year with the industry in the spotlight. The COVID-19 pandemic and its complications continue to be a source of concern. You can expect to see the emergence of changes in health care for 2021 helping the nation move forward.
There are challenges to overcome in 2021, but some positive developments are likely to advance the medical field and empower Americans to receive a higher quality of health care from now on.
In 2021, some crucial hurdles will shape the health care industry. The pandemic’s ripple effects will continue to be a major focal point, as will health care reform considerations.
For the health care industry as a whole and for individual Americans, COVID-19 will continue to be a chief concern, and rightly so. The COVID-19 crisis was all-consuming in 2020. Compared to the overwhelming effects the health care industry experienced last year, this year — which has already seen declines i...
Due to the Federal UI Supplement of the American Rescue Plan, if someone has received unemployment insurance for at least one week in 2021, then they qualify for the following:
This discount is approved for the entire year of 2021. However, Covered California is not expected to implement this until August of this year.
In July or August, Covered California plans to add the question about Unemployment Insurance to the CALHEERS application. If you affirm that you have received unemployment income in 2021, then you will receive rates based on an income that is 138.1% of the Federal Poverty Level. See Covered California Income Chart.
Note: Normally at 138.1% of FPL, children ages 0-18 would end up on Medi-Cal. However, this UI Discount will not cause children to end up on Medicaid/Medi-Cal who would not have qualified otherwise. Medi-Cal eligibility will still be based on the full income and the associated Federal Poverty Level.
Details are being worked out. We anticipate it working like thi...
Due to Proposition 22, app-based drivers working for companies like Uber, Lyft, Door Dash, Grub Hubb, etc. receive money toward their health care coverage from the app-based company. They can enroll through Covered California, receive subsidies, and receive additional money from the company toward the cost of their health care. However, they do need to submit documentation to prove they have enrolled in a health insurance plan.
Covered California announced today:
Proposition 22 Proof of Coverage forms are available today for PDF download. Because some app-based network companies have strict submission windows, consumers who are app-based drivers should upload their Proof of Coverage PDFs to their network company(ies) site as soon as possible. Some companies may not pay stipends for a Proof of Coverage document received after their specified date.
Please note: For future quarters, Proof of Coverage documents will be available the first day after the close of the quarter. For example, Qua...
Mix the complicated worlds of health care and politics and you can end up with nothing but confusion. Health care in the 2020 election has been a hot topic, alongside other key issues. We’re here to help Californians and all Americans better understand the health care policies put forth by the 2020 presidential candidates: President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden. We’ll discuss the Republican vs. Democratic stance on health care and how these candidate’s policies compare.
The Democratic Party’s platform has pushed health care reform for many years. One of the most significant changes came with the Affordable Care Act (ACA), nicknamed ObamaCare after the Democratic president who signed it into law in 2010. The current Democratic nominee for the 2020 presidential race, Joe Biden, was the vice president at the time.
According to the Democratic National Committee, the Affordable Care Act brought health care to more than 20 million previously uninsured American...
As the cost of health care continues to rise, many consumers are concerned about how they will be able to fit health insurance into their budgets. Due to the increasing costs, consumers are looking into alternatives. One option that tends to come up is a health share plan.
What exactly are health share plans? What can a health share plan offer you, and what do you need to know about these plans before you commit to one? As a California resident, you should understand the difference between health insurance and health share plans to make the best decision for you and your family.
Health share plans are also referred to as health sharing ministries and health care sharing programs. A health share plan is not the same as a cheap health insurance program, nor is it a health care alternative. Instead, health share plans are cooperatives in which members agree to cover a portion of one another’s medical costs. These plans are often faith-based, and though they may sound similar to insur...