How to Get Health Insurance While Self-Employed

While most employees rely on an employer-sponsored plan for coverage, what are health insurance options for those who are self-employed? Are they as good as the options you have working for a regular business? And should you even worry about health insurance if you are self-employed?

These are all questions you’ve probably asked if you’ve never had to deal with health insurance on your own. To learn these answers, keep reading and gather some options that’ll help you out.

Do You Need Health Insurance While You Are Self-Employed?

The biggest thing you are probably wondering is if you even need health insurance while you are self-employed. Well, the quickest answer is yes, you do. Whether you are working for a business or you are your own boss, you can still get sick or injured, leaving you with expensive medical bills. You don’t want to deal with medical bills you can't pay alone, so this is precisely why you need health insurance to help you out.

Now that you know how important it is to have insurance, here are some options for you to consider:

1. HealthCare.gov

The website is basically an all-in-one marketplace for health insurance. If you are self-employed and you’re not planning on changing jobs in the future, you can use the website to shop for private plans. You can also use this to find out whether you can qualify for lower premiums or Advanced Premium Tax Credit – or APTC. The latter can lower your premium if your income is lower than a set minimum.

Make sure to spend some time scrolling through the options as there are plenty of plans for you to choose from and you don’t want to choose the first plan you come across. You would want to pay attention not only to the price, but also to what’s included in the coverage. Make sure you are giving yourself enough coverage to cover yourself comfortably, while not paying for things that seem like they are unnecessary for you.

2. Federal Programs

If you are over 65, are an active-duty service member, are a part of their family, or if your income is below a certain level, you might be able to qualify for a federal program as long as you just make sure that you have the necessary documents to prove your eligibility.

Here are the following programs you can qualify for if you need insurance while you are self-employed:

• Medicaid provides free insurance for individuals with incomes below the poverty level (the maximum income is a little over $20,000). You can also get approved for Medicaid if you have a few children or if you’re disabled.
• Medicare is a special program for those over 65 years old. With Original Medicare, you will pay for medical services as you get them. You’ll pay a deductible at the start of the year, and you will usually take care of about 20% of the cost of the approved service.
• TRICARE is an insurance program for active-duty service members, as well as retirees, survivors, and their families.

3. COBRA Health Insurance

COBRA is a suitable health insurance for individuals who might have only recently lost their jobs. The program allows you to keep the health plan you had at your previous job for around 18-36 months, but you would have to pay more each month as your employer is no longer doing that for you. This would be a good option if you are just starting out as self-employed and don’t quite have your footing yet.

4. A Short-Term Medical Plan

Short-term health insurance can be helpful for those who are not planning on staying self-employed for too long. In such a case, you’ll be able to sign up for this plan outside of the enrollment period, and your monthly premium will typically be lower than what you’d have to pay with COBRA.

However, do bear in mind that with short-term plans, any preexisting conditions are usually not covered. You'll find short-term plans available by state on the United Healthcare website.

How Much Does Health Insurance Cost?

You would certainly want to choose a plan with good coverage. Otherwise, health insurance will simply not make any sense. This can also mean that you would have to pay hundreds of dollars each month (unless you qualify for TRICARE or Medicaid).

By the way, you would have to take care of not only monthly premiums but also the deductible, copayments, and the out-of-pocket maximum. So, be prepared to pay at least $400 each month.

Can A Loan Help Get Access To Fast Cash?

While getting health insurance is important, that doesn’t mean emergencies will wait until you have coverage to happen. As we all know, emergencies happen anytime without warning, leaving you needing quick money to handle them. If that does happen, you can get either a title loan, payday loan, or installment loan when you come to Utah Title Loans, Inc. right now! Either of our three loans can get you the money you need quickly, and they come with a short list of required items.

Even better, you can come in even if you have poor credit! We also have store locations throughout Utah, so you are bound to find a store near you. And if you go for a title loan, our representatives will even come to you so you don’t have to come to one of our stores! If you do qualify for whichever loan you want, you can get the money either later that same day or the next bank business day. All you have to do is go to our website to learn more about our loans.

Get Your Health Insurance While You Are Self-Employed

When it comes to health insurance, it is important you have coverage – even if you are self-employed. And as this article shows, you can easily get the coverage you need without having an employer. Use one of these options to get the coverage you really need.

If an emergency happens before you get your health insurance, remember we here at Utah Title Loans, Inc. can help you out. Get started now on the loan you want by filling out the online form on our website today!

 

Note: The content provided in this article is only for informational purposes, and you should contact your financial advisor about your specific financial situation.