Avoid the Penalty with help from Covered California 

 In the state of California it is the Law that you must have Health Insurance coverage for most of the year. If you do not have health insurance for the year for 2020 the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) will impose a penalty that is collected when you file your taxes. 

We here at Neighborhood Health Insurance Center, are able to help you avoid this penalty, and get health insurance that is low cost or no cost. Additionally, unique to California , the state is offering additional assistance for higher income earners. Over a half million Californians are  currently receiving a savings of $600 on average a month. 

 About the Penalty 

For a family of four, who go uninsured for the full year of 2020, they will face a penalty of  up to $2,250. With help from Covered California, households who are eligible for assistance are getting $504 per month on average in assistance. This amount will lower a household monthly premium by nearly 50%. If you have questions about how much subsidy you may be eligible for, you can contact us at 844-367-6555 to get a free quote for your household. 

Starting in 2020, residents of California must either: 

• Have Full coverage Health insurance (accident insurance or short term insurance generally does not count) 
• Or Pay the state tax penalty when they file taxes.
• Or have a valid exemption from the tax penalty 

The penalty in California for not having health insurance is $750 per adult and $375 per dependent child. This tax will be levied if you do not have health insurance, on when you file your 2020 taxes. If your household has four people, then your penalty would be $2,250.

If you have questions about what your California Health Insurance Tax penalty may be, or have general questions about the California Health Insurance Tax Penalty you can visit the California Franchise Tax board’s website to use their Health Insurance Tax penalty estimator Tool.

https://www.ftb.ca.gov/file/personal/filing-situations/healthcare/estimator/

Exemptions that are available for the California health insurance Tax Penalty

Although most people will be subject to California’s Health Insurance Tax mandate , there are some exempts to the Tax. In order to be exempt you must apply for them through Covered California or depending on the exemption you may be able to claim it when you file your state tax return. If you believe that you are exempt from health insurance because it is too expensive you should check with us if it is not possible to get additional subsidy this year. Even though the Penalty cost is high, they are not nearly as high as the cost of having a health emergency and not having any health coverage.

Exemptions you can claim when you file  state Taxes

These are the exemptions that you can claim on your California State Tax return

• If your income is to low to be required to file state income taxes
• You lonely had a very short coverage gap, less than three months
• The health coverage is not affordable, this must be based on the income that you reported on your state tax return when filing taxes.

o   Single Person – cost of the lowest cost Bronze plan through Covered California or coverage offered by your work is more than 9.5% of your income

o   Family: cost of lowest cost employer coverage is more than 9.5% for the employed person only, not including the cost for dependents.

• Californians who are not legally present in the country
• Individuals or families who are not residents of California
• Religious Exemptions
• Somebody who is part of a Federally Recognized tribe including Alaska Natives, or people who are eligible for health services through the Indian Health Services
• Incarceration
• Enrolled into Medicaid or Medi-Cal health Coverage

Minimum Coverage Plans available through Covered California

Minimum Coverage plans, also known as Catastrophic plans, can be enrolled into by people under the age of 30 years old or older if they have a “affordability hardship exemption through Covered California” and are approved. If somebody applies for the Hardship exemption they will receive a ECN – Exemption Certificate Number and will be able to use it to buy a Catastrophic plane direct with the insurance company of their choice, who offers Catastrophic plans. 

We are the Covered California Enrollment Center, your place to get free assistance with your health insurance plan. We can assist you to sign up, enroll and update your private health Insurance, Covered California plan, Medi-Cal, Obamacare and Medicare insurances. Our California agency is certified by Covered California, to assist you in-person, over the phone or online in English and Spanish. 

We specialize in individual and family health insurance plans, Medicare, Medicare Advantage plans, Medicare Supplement (MediGap plans), Medicare Prescription Drug plans (Part D), as well as, Dental and Vision coverage. We can help you get enrolled into health insurance plans, compare healthcare options, provide required health coverage tax documents and review the plans that best fit your budget and healthcare needs.  

Call us today at 844-367-6555 for free assistance over the phone, visit our website at www.EnrollSocal.Com to make an appointment at our California Enrollment Centers Serving San Diego County, Los Angeles County and Imperial County.