Annual Open Enrollment Dates
INDIVIDUAL HEALTH
Nov. 1st – Jan. 31st*
MEDICARE MARKET
Oct. 15th – Dec. 7th*
Miss the deadline? To enroll for health insurance or Medicare outside of the open enrollment period, you will need a qualifying event to be eligible
Though in 2019 the Trump administration rescinded the tax penalty established by the Affordable Care Act, you may still need to pay a tax penalty in 2021 if you live in California and do not have health insurance either through an individual policy or through their employer. However, individuals can only purchase policies during the annual open enrollment of November 1st through January 31st of each year.
You can still sign up for health insurance after the deadline if you meet any of the following qualifying events:
Once enrolled in Medicare, if you wish to change or purchase Supplement Plans, you must act during the open enrollment period.
When open enrollment is closed, there are special circumstances in which one may qualify to enroll outside of the enrollment period. Listed below are the qualifying events:
For a quote for any of our insurance plans, call us at 805-379-9374, fax 805-379-1585 or email us at mail@CarmicAssoc.com. We will respond to your request promptly.
A Health Maintenance Organization or HMO health plan requires you to appoint a primary care physician and to use doctors and facilities that are affiliated with the HMO. If you use healthcare service providers outside of the HMO, there is a good chance those charges won’t be covered by your policy. The great thing about an HMO is that the only charges you incur, outside of your premiums, are co-pays for doctor’s visits and other services such as procedures and prescriptions.
A Preferred Provider Organization or PPO health plan will save you money on services if you use the preferred providers within the network. Keep in mind that deductibles must be met on this plan before some services will be covered. The good thing about a PPO is they generally will allow a certain amount of services annually outside of the deductible with a small co-pay, and, most often the PPO has a large network with quality care providers and excellent prescription drug coverage.
Catastrophic Plans are great for those healthy individuals who do not expect to need medical care throughout the year, other than routine preventative care (generally available for under age 30). Note catastrophic plans may or may not contain the essential benefits required by the ACA to avoid penalty.
Individual Dental Plans
Individual and family dental plans or policies are relatively inexpensive, and can go a long way in promoting your overall health.
Dental plans can range from a PPO or HMO to Pre-Paid, Fee-for-Service, and Discount on a variety of diagnostic and preventative care services including cleanings, exams, x-rays, fillings, orthodontia for children, and emergency care while traveling.
Individual Vision Plans
Take care of your eyes with an individual vision plan that can be purchased separately or combined with your major medical insurance. Similar to individual dental policies, vision plans are inexpensive and save money on routine exams, eyeglass frames and lenses, contacts, and even discounts on procedures like LASIK. Monitoring your eye health with regular exams also helps to prevent serious eye diseases like glaucoma and cataracts and also helps to detect early stages of diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.
Life Insurance covers your loved ones in the event of a tragedy by helping to pay for your final expenses, your mortgage, your taxes, and the living expenses of your loved ones when they no longer have your income. It can also cover your children’s education and more.
Basic types of Life Insurance
Cash Value: This type of life insurance policy builds up a cash value that has many benefits to the insured, such as borrowing against the policy or building a tax deferred investment income, in addition to paying a death benefit. Whole life, variable life and universal life are all types of cash value life insurance. Cash value insurance is also known as permanent life insurance because it provides coverage for the policyholder’s entire life.
Term Life Policy: This type of coverage does not build cash or investment value. Term life insurance covers you for a set period of time provided you pay the monthly premium, or in some instances, a lump sum in advance. The policy will pay to the named beneficiary the face amount of the policy (set benefit and/or lump sum) upon death of the insured within the stated term. Depending on the policy, it may also make payments upon terminal or critical illness.
Disability Insurance protects your most valuable asset during your working years, which is your ability to earn a living.
During the time you are unable to work due to a qualifying disability (illness or injury), the disability insurance replaces your regular income through a monthly benefit in order to maintain your pre-disability lifestyle. Workplaces often provide standard short-term disability (STD) and long-term disability (LTD) insurance to meet federal guidelines. Individual disability income insurance can be customized to meet your needs and considers your occupation, age, income and other factors to determine your cost and monthly benefit payment amount.
Self-employed individuals and employees not offered disability insurance through their employer can purchase their own policies.
Those who have disability insurance through their workplace may wish to consider a “wrap around” disability policy to supplement their employer-provided coverage.
Short Term Disability generally allows for income payments to begin after about a two-week waiting period and will continue to pay until the individual recovers or maxes out the benefits–usually anywhere between one month to two years, depending on the policy.
Long Term Disability generally allows for income payments to begin after about a 90-day waiting period. The waiting period could be longer depending on the policy, however it will continue to pay far longer than STD–for a few years, up to age 65, or even for life.
Long-Term Care Insurance
Long-Term Care (LTC) recipients are not “sick” in the traditional sense. Instead they are unable to perform some or all of the activities of daily living such as: dressing, bathing, eating, getting in/out of bed, toileting, walking or other basic activities. Long-Term Care encompasses a wide array of services that fall under two general categories – skilled care and personal care.
Long-Term Care is usually not medical care and generally does not require a doctor or a nurse.
Long-Term Care services are generally not covered, or covered minimally, by health insurance, Medicare or Medicaid. The cost of LTC can quickly drain a large estate and burden those closest to you both financially and emotionally. Long-Term Care insurance can enable you to maintain control of your care and your choice of facilities, preventing welfare or the government from making LTC decisions for you. Disability Income Insurance is not designed to cover LTC expenses, but simply replaces part or all of your income during your working years should you become disabled. You need specific coverage to pay for long-term care needs.
Here are examples of what LTC policies may cover:
Institutional Care: Nursing home, assisted living services residential care facility, hospice care, adult foster home, respite care and more.
Home Care: Home health care, adult day care, personal care, homemaker services, hospice care, respite care and more.
Medicare & Medicare Plans
Original Medicare (Part A) covers inpatient hospital stays, care in a skilled nursing facility, hospice care, and some home health care. Part B covers certain doctors’ services, outpatient care, medical supplies, and preventive services.
Here’s how Medicare Supplement Plans work to offset your healthcare costs:
Medicare Supplement Insurance policies complement your original Medicare and will pay some, if not all, of the expenses that Part A and B do not cover.
Medicare Part D adds prescription drug coverage to Original Medicare, some Medicare Cost Plans, some Medicare Private-Fee-for-Service Plans, and Medicare Medical Savings Account Plans.
Signing up for Medicare
Most Medicare Parts A & B will have a seven-month open enrollment period during which you can enroll. This period begins three months before the month you turn 65, includes the month you turn 65 and ends three months after the month you turn 65.
Once enrolled, if you wish to change or purchase Supplement Plans, you must act during the open enrollment period.
When open enrollment is closed, there are special circumstances in which one may qualify to enroll outside of the enrollment period. Listed below are the qualifying events:
Important Disclaimers:
Benefits: Any benefit information provided on our website is a brief summary, not a comprehensive description of benefits, and may contain inaccuracies. For more information contact the plan administrator or carrier directly. Limitations, copayments, and restrictions may apply, depending on the plan.
Contact Forms: By providing information via our contact forms or quote request forms, you agree that an authorized representative or licensed insurance broker of Carmichael Associates may contact you by telephone, email, or mail to answer your questions or to provide additional information.
Agents: Carmichael Associates, and Stan Carmichael is a fully licensed insurance agent/agency authorized to market health, life and Medicare Supplement insurance plans. This is a solicitation for insurance. You have no guaranteed issue or other benefits. Offerings of insurance are made by carriers/insurers based only on submitted applications. Carmichael Associates is an independent insurance brokerage and is not an insurance carrier/insurer.