With over 92% of Americans possessing a health insurance plan from public or private insurance companies, the question of subsidies has always been burning if not painful. In 2021, though, substantial changes were made to allow more Americans to subsidize their ACA health insurance plans.
The recent changes made more Americans eligible for subsidies. The notorious 2021 American Rescue Plan is expected to allow at least 225,000 North Carolinians to get subsidies for their ACA-chosen health insurance plans, to follow over 4.6 million Americans who have already gained health coverage in 2021 through the ACA Marketplace.
According to Mark Van Arnam, the director of the NC Navigator Consortium, it’s now possible to get ACA health insurance for less than $10 a month, the price of a few cups of coffee. As per the ACA, people with income up to four times the FPL – about $106,000 for a family of four or about $51,200 for a single person in 2021 – are eligible for subsidies, the size of which is inversely proportional to the level of income.
In 2022, not only will people with relatively high income be able to get substantial premium help, but also people who make more than the income cutoff will become eligible for subsidies. In particular, employees spending over 8.5% of their income on employer-based health insurance may also be able to receive ACA coverage at a reduced rate. What’s more, the Build Back Better bill, which is now stalled in the Senate, includes a proposal to increase subsidies even more in 2022.
The application window for ACA health insurance closes on January 15.
Oleksandr is an expert in deep research. He covers various insurance topics across verticals, adopting to every local law.
