Blog 7: Time extended to enroll in Health Care

The original date to enroll for health care through the federal market place is March 31st , the Obama administration has decided to extend this deadline to mid- April. People are now allowed to ask for an extension only if they check a box online saying that they have begun the process for enrolling so they can finish later. If citizens do not choose a plan by this time then they receive a tax penalty but citizens who ask for an extension do not receive his fine. This extension is for people who ran into technical difficulties with the website and difficulties calculating their financial aid through the system. There is still some confusion as to why an extension is allowed when sign-ups began in October of last year. This enrollment opened up for citizens who cannot afford health insurance due to the Affordable Care Act of 2010. After mid-April people may not ask for extensions through the federal market place, only privately. And the only people who can ask for extensions must tell the truth under the circumstances of having a new baby, losing a job which provided health care, getting a divorce, and technical difficulties among enrolling.

   

Many people are enrolling last minute so this extension gives others who did not wait last minute a chance to finish when the system maybe too busy to finish the enrolling process. The Obama Administration wants every American to be covered so extending the deadline will allow for more people to be covered. Many citizens do choose to not enroll until they are actually sick, hence the tax penalty which encourages people to choose a health plan. Health insurance companies have to be cautious of the extension because they are selling plans into the market place but fear that people are waiting until they are sick to get covered but to keep money in order insurance companies need both sick and healthy people.