Missed The Open Enrollment Deadline? It's Not Too Late!

The following article is sponsored by Liberty HealthShare.

Since the inception of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, Americans have been limited to a specific time frame each year in which they are able to purchase their healthcare plan for the following year. While this time frame used to be a three month period, running from November through January, it has been shortened to 45 days, running from November 1 through December 15, since the Trump administration has taken office. If you miss this window to sign up for a healthcare plan for the following year, you’re left without the ability enroll in a plan until the next year unless you qualify for an exception. At least that’s what you’re led to believe.

What many people don’t realize is that missing the healthcare Open Enrollment deadline doesn’t mean you can’t purchase a healthcare plan for the following year. It simply means you can’t purchase a plan sold via the Exchange. Luckily for those who have missed the deadline either by accident or because you couldn’t afford the monthly cost of the plans listed, there is a healthcare option out there which allows consumers to enroll any time through the year. It’s called healthcare sharing and it’s available to anyone who purchases healthcare for themselves or their family, or who wants to control their own healthcare.

While healthcare sharing can be an effective solution for those who have missed the Open Enrollment deadline, it certainly shouldn’t be considered simply as a last resort. Over one million Americans are currently utilizing healthcare sharing programs as a way to pay for their healthcare expenses and they do so for several different reasons. For some people, healthcare sharing is the right choice due to the money they save compared to plans offered on the Exchange. Others choose healthcare sharing for the religious aspects that accompany the programs, such as not sharing towards expenses related to abortions, sex changes, or drugs and alcohol use by the member. Furthermore, many members join healthcare sharing organizations as a way of assisting their fellow members and building a sense of community.

Liberty HealthShare is one of the healthcare sharing organizations that are effectively serving members who join for a variety of reasons. Price is certainly a key reason why many members of Liberty HealthShare joined. With prices starting as low as $199 per month for singles and $429 for families, Liberty HealthShare has some of the most affordable healthcare prices available. However, many members also join Liberty HealthShare due to the organization’s Christian background and principles. Like many healthcare sharing organizations, Liberty HealthShare does not share towards expenses related to abortions, sex changes, or drugs and alcohol use by the member. Also, members share a common belief in basic Christian principles such as sharing one another’s burdens.

While you were shopping around on the Open Enrollment marketplace, most of the plans you saw were probably upwards of $400 or more per month, but you may have also come across some plans that had prices more similar to the prices offered by Liberty HealthShare. However, as you dug deeper, you probably noticed that the difference between those plans on the Exchange and the plans offered by Liberty HealthShare is the amount of protection against medical expenses provided to the consumer. Many of the more inexpensive plans offered during Open Enrollment only offered consumers protection against catastrophic expenses and came with high out-of-pocket costs.

In contrast, Liberty HealthShare offers plans that allow members to receive the medical care they need without breaking the bank. In fact, with the most comprehensive plan offered by Liberty HealthShare, members receive up to $1,000,000 in protection for each medical incident. Put more simply, if you break your arm, your medical bills are paid up to a $1,000,000 limit and that limit would reset if a separate incident arose, such as a bout with the flu. That per incident limit can really end up being a big deal, especially if you have children, as they tend to become sick or injured at a much higher rate than adults.

While many people believe the notion that if you miss the Open Enrollment deadline, you can’t get a healthcare plan for next year, that simply isn’t true. Healthcare sharing organizations such as Liberty HealthShare offer consumers the ability to enroll any time with membership beginning the following month. That means you can still protect yourself and your family from potentially debilitating medical expenses, even though this year’s Open Enrollment deadline has come and gone. In fact, with healthcare sharing organizations such as Liberty HealthShare offering comprehensive plans at such affordable prices, missing the deadline may have been a blessing in disguise, allowing you to take back your healthcare freedom.