10 Things You Should Know About Health Insurance Open Enrollment for 2024
You’ve probably heard it before—Open Enrollment is coming! But what is it, and when does Open Enrollment start?
We’ve put together a short guide to provide answers to the most common questions such as “Why does Open Enrollment exist?”, “When does Open Enrollment start?”, and “How often is Open Enrollment?”
1. What is Open Enrollment?
Open Enrollment is the one time of year that you can buy or change your health insurance. If you don’t buy health insurance during OEP, you will not be able to purchase until OEP the following year unless you experience a qualifying life event.
If you already have health insurance, this still applies to you! This is the one time of year you can change your plan.
2. When is Open Enrollment?
For most states, Open Enrollment starts November 1 and ends January 16. Your new plan's start date will depend on when you apply.
But don’t worry. We make it quick and easy to compare plans, find financial assistance, and enroll.
3. Why does Open Enrollment exist?
If Open Enrollment didn’t exist, when would you buy health insurance? Most likely when you got sick or injured, right?
Well, OEP restricts when you can buy health insurance in order to maintain a needed balance for health insurance companies. By constraining the time period in which you can purchase health insurance, the amount of money going into and coming out of insurance companies’ pockets remains relatively balanced. This allows insurance companies to maintain a balanced pool of sick and healthy people, keeping the marketplaces stable.
The amount individuals pay in premiums works to counteract the money insurance companies are paying out towards claims. If people could sign up for insurance at any point, this balance wouldn’t exist and would cause an unhealthy disruption within the health insurance industry.
4. Who does Open Enrollment apply to?
Americans ages 18 to 64 who aren’t already covered by Medicaid, an employer, their parents, or Veterans Affairs.
5. Which states have extended enrollment windows?
Some states choose to extend the window people have to buy health insurance. Check to see if you live in one of these states and take note of the enrollment window:
Idaho: November 1 - December 15
Kentucky and Maine: November 1 - January 16
Massachusetts: November 1 - January 23
New Jersey, California, New York, and Rhode Island: November 1 - January 31
6. What if I already have a plan from last year?
If you purchased health insurance during last year, you may be automatically re-enrolled for next year. Beware—insurers often change their plans a bit from year to year. If you don’t review your coverage during Open Enrollment, you may see your monthly health payments increase, your doctor may stop accepting your plan, and your prescriptions may no longer be covered.
Make a habit of reviewing your plan each year to make sure it still meets your needs. While you’re at it, see whether other plans have been added to your area. You could find an even better deal than your current plan offers, but you won’t know unless you look.
7. What can I expect for Open Enrollment 2024?
Health insurance can be very affordable for most! Stride will help you search through all health insurance plans on healthcare.gov or your local state marketplace, recommend the best plan for your needs, and see if you’re eligible for savings.
You will still get just as much value from your plan. Plans will continue to cover all the essential health benefits you’d look for in a health plan. Plans are required to continue covering things like emergency services, preventative care, prescription drugs, and more. If you have questions about your coverage, don’t be afraid to ask us by emailing support@stridehealth.com.
8. Do I have to sign up for all types of insurance during Open Enrollment?
Nope. Open Enrollment only applies to health insurance.
However, many people choose to enroll in dental, vision, disability, life, and accident insurance during OEP in order to protect their entire physical and financial wellbeing all at once. Stride makes it easy to buy most of these at the same time so you can get back to doing what you want to be doing.
9. How am I going to afford health insurance?
Subsidies (a fancy word for financial assistance) are offered to help people afford health insurance. These are offered in two forms: the premium tax credit (this means you don’t have to pay them back) and the cost-sharing subsidy.
Wondering if you qualify for these? Stride will help you figure it out based on eligibility criteria.
10. Where can I buy my health insurance?
While you can buy health insurance directly from the federal or state exchanges, Stride makes the whole process a lot easier. We’ll search through all of the Healthcare.gov plans to find the best one for your needs and check if you qualify for financial assistance—all in 10 minutes or less. Then we'll help you get enrolled and covered as fast as possible.