In March, The Biden-Harris administration announced the American Rescue Plan’s healthcare policies and how they will impact healthcare going forward. According to the plan, the overall cost of healthcare will be reduced, while access to coverage will expand. In addition, everyone who purchases a family or individual plan can receive a tax credit to reduce their monthly premiums.
According to the United States Department of Health & Human Services, the average monthly premium will decrease by $50 per person, and by $85 per policy. This equates to $600 in savings over the course of a year for an individual, and $1,020 for a policy with multiple people. According to the HHS, a family of four with a yearly income of $90,000 a year will see their premiums decrease by $200 per month on average. Approximately 14.9 million people who do not have health insurance will be able to save money on premiums to be able to afford coverage. Furthermore, an estimated 3.6 million people who are currently uninsured will be newly eligible for healthcare coverage savings, and 1.8 million people are estimated to be eligible for zero-dollar benchmark marketplace coverage.
Tax credits to lower monthly premiums are based on multiple factors: household income, number of people in the household who file taxes and the premium amount of the second cheapest Silver plan in the marketplace.
These moves are in what has been a concerted effort by the new administration to make healthcare more affordable and accessible. On February 15, the federal healthcare marketplace was reopened for three months until May 15 for people who lost coverage or did not sign up during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
The effort to get as many people insured as possible coincides with one of the toughest years economically in recent history that resulted in millions losing coverage due to not being able to pay their premiums because of job loss. With the COVID-19 pandemic seemingly in its final stages, the combination of the economic recovery along with the ability to easily access healthcare will hopefully see more people with health insurance than ever before.
While the bill was officially signed into law on March 11, consumers will have to wait until April 1 to take advantage of these savings and cost-cutting measures in the marketplace.
Agents
We hope this information on American Rescue Plan’s healthcare policies is helpful to you.
Empower Brokerage is dedicated to helping you educate your clients on the insurance they need and staying on top of their health. Whether it’s through webinar training, one-on-one calls, seminars, or marketing plans. We want you to be successful. Give us a call if you have any questions 888-539-1633.
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Jeffrey is a graduate from the University of North Texas and joined the Empower Brokerage marketing team in 2020. He is the social media manager for empower brokerage, in addition to writing blogs and doing various campaigns. LinkedIn profile
