If your state finds that your household income is too high or other items make you ineligible, you may lose your Medicaid or Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage.
The Marketplace may contact you
When you lose Medicaid or CHIP coverage, your state securely sends your contact information to the Marketplace. We’ll use it to mail you a letter about Marketplace coverage. We may also follow up with you by phone, text, or email, if you gave that contact information to your state. You don’t need to wait for us to contact you to apply for coverage.
Apply for Marketplace coverage right away
- You may be able to get low-cost, quality health coverage through the Marketplace.
- All Marketplace plans cover things like prescription drugs, doctor visits, urgent care, hospital visits, and more.
You can apply and enroll in a Marketplace plan as early as 60 days before your Medicaid or CHIP coverage ends to avoid a gap in coverage. You can also apply for a Marketplace plan after your Medicaid or CHIP coverage ends—you have 90 days after submitting your application to enroll in a plan that will start at the beginning of the next month after you complete your enrollment.
Most people qualify for savings
When you apply to the Marketplace, you’ll find out if you qualify for:
- The premium tax credit that lowers your monthly premium
- Extra savings (also called “cost-sharing reductions”) to lower what you pay when you get services, like deductibles and copays.
To apply, you’ll first create an account (or log into your account if you already have one).
Local help in your community
About a month after we send you the first letter, if you haven’t enrolled in coverage, we may send you another letter with information about an assister organization that works with us to help your local community. Marketplace assisters provide free, fair, impartial, and accurate information to you and your household. Assisters are trained by us to give you information about your health coverage options, answer your questions, and help you enroll in a Marketplace plan, Medicaid, or CHIP.
A Marketplace assister in your community may contact you by phone, text, or email with the information you provided to your state Medicaid or CHIP agency.
Assisters will:
- Never ask you for your credit card number or any other form of payment:
- Their services to help you get health coverage are free of charge.
- When you enroll in a health plan, you’ll always pay your premiums directly to the insurance company – never to the Marketplace or its assisters.
- Always provide a Privacy Notice Statement, and get your consent or “authorization” before discussing or accessing your personal information
- What do I do if someone contacts me and says they’re a Marketplace assister?
Confirm who they are before providing any information. Ask for their name, who they work for, and their organization’s phone number, street address, mailing address, email address, and website. Write this information down. Compare it to the organization listed in the letter you got from the Marketplace.
To get help with your coverage options or to apply for Marketplace coverage, find local help near you or contact the Marketplace Call Center.
Re-apply if you lost or will soon lose Medicaid or CHIP
If your state says you’re no longer eligible for Medicaid or CHIP coverage, you can re-apply through your state at any time to find out if you still qualify. (In all states, Medicaid and CHIP offers health coverage to some low-income people, families and children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities.)
Check with your employer about job-based coverage
Your employer may offer health insurance. If they do, find out how to decide between job-based or Marketplace coverage.
Learn more about the Marketplace:
- Get details and steps for applying after losing Medicaid/CHIP
- Check if you qualify for savings before you apply
- Preview plans and prices
- Browse full list of items Marketplace plans cover
Qualify for Medicare?
If you now qualify for Medicare but didn't sign up for it when you first became eligible, you may be able to sign up for Medicare without paying a late enrollment penalty.