How To Pick the Best Health Insurance Plan in 2024?

It's important to consider types of coverage, eligibility, monthly cost, the types of plans, and enrollment period when choosing the right health insurance plan for you. Private insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, and Individual Health Insurance plans are all options you can consider.

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5 Things To Know Before Choosing a Health Insurance Plan

1. Type of coverage. There are many different ways you can obtain coverage. They can be grouped into four main categories:

• Employer-based
• Government Based Health Insurance
• Marketplace Exchange
• Supplemental Plans
• Health Share Plans

2. Eligibility: Many health insurance plans have eligibility criteria. They depend on your income, age, employment, and where you live.

3. Monthly cost: The monthly premium for each plan can range from no-cost (Medicaid) to a few thousand dollars for a family Gold plan (individual exchange). Premiums must be paid monthly, regardless if you use the insurance or not.

4. Type of plans: Plans can have different pricing tiers and how broad or narrow the network is. This may also correlate with how high the monthly premium is. For example, a wider network may cost more.

5. Enrollment period: This is when you can enroll in a health insurance plan. Some plans have a specific time frame for when you can enroll, and for other plans, you can enroll any time of the year as long as you're eligible.

How To Pick the Best Health Insurance Plan for You

Picking the best-suited plan for you comes down to three things:

1) What are you eligible for? Try to determine what options you are eligible for. You may be qualified for more options than you think.

2) What are your healthcare needs? If you are relatively healthy, getting the top-tier plan may not make sense if you have to bear the cost. Meanwhile, if you have a chronic condition and need expensive treatments, getting a catastrophic plan may not be the best option for you. Most preventative care services like wellness visits and flu shots are covered at no out-of-pocket costs. A plan's summary of benefits might help you navigate if the plan is right for you in terms of your needs.

3) What can you afford? Of course, everyone wants to get the lowest-cost and most comprehensive plan, but healthcare is expensive. Look at your financial situation as a whole and see which options make the most sense from a financial perspective.

Health Insurance Penalty

Effective 2019 tax year, the individual mandate was repealed at the federal level. This means you will not be fined for not having or cannot afford health insurance.

Some states like Massachusetts, New Jersey, California, Rhode Island, or the District of Columbia reinstated this at the state tax level. The penalty itself is not an actual cash fine but a reduction of your annual tax refund (at the state level). In California, the tax refund reduction is $62 per month. There is no individual mandate or fine in New York State.