Utah Health Insurance
The Affordable Care Act will change the way some residents of the Beehive State access health insurance. Utah operates a health insurance marketplace for small businesses called Avenue H.
However, according to Avenue H’s official website, individuals and families should use the federal health insurance marketplace at HealthCare.gov to find affordable health insurance. Additionally, Utah is one of three states still debating Medicaid expansion in 2014.
You can register for an account at the federal marketplace and apply for health insurance online during open enrollment. After your application is complete, can research private marketplace plans and determine if you qualify for tax credits, Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, called CHIP.
The tax credits come in the form of subsidies, which can be used immediately on their premiums.
In some cases, different family members might qualify for different programs. For example, the children of some families may qualify for CHIP, but the parents might qualify for premium subsidies.
Do you qualify for Utah health insurance subsidies?
According to a January 2014 Kaiser Family Foundation profile of the uninsured in Utah, 46 percent of formerly uninsured state residents now qualify for financial assistance. Typically, people who can access other affordable heath insurance will not qualify for premium subsidies.
This could be from employer-sponsored benefits or other government programs. Subsidies can only be used for plans purchased on the marketplace.
Here’s how residents might get help paying for Utah health insurance.
- People with incomes between 100 and 400 percent of the federal poverty level may qualify for financial assistance. This translates to an income between $23,550 and $94,200 for a family of four and between $11,490 and $45,960 for one person.
- Typically, eligibility for subsidies is based on 2013 poverty level limits, and Medicaid and CHIP eligibility is generally based on 2014 limits.
- In Utah, nondisabled parents with an income below 46 percent of the federal poverty level, or about $10,970 per year for a family of four, may qualify for Medicaid.
- The children of Utah families with incomes below 205 percent of the poverty level, or about $48,890 a year for a family of four, might qualify for CHIP.
Some Utah residents might earn too much to qualify for subsidies but still decide to purchase health insurance on the marketplace. Insurers cannot discriminate against people based on pre-existing health conditions, and they must provide mandated benefits.
These plans may be appealing to some residents even without government-sponsored subsidies.
Marketplace health insurance companies in Utah
According to the Utah Insurance Department, these companies offer qualified marketplace plans for individuals and families:
- Altius Health Plans Inc.
- Arches Mutual Insurance
- BridgeSpan Health
- Humana Medical Plan of Utah
- Molina Healthcare
- SelectHealth
Utah health and coverage statistics
Utah population (2013): 2,900,872
Population 65 and older (2012): 9.5 percent
Life expectancy (2010): 80.2 years
Number of Medicaid beneficiaries (2012): 295,800
Number of Medicare beneficiaries (2012): 267,900
Estimated number of uninsured residents (2012): 411,600
Overall state health ranking (2014): 6
Sources: Kaiser Family Foundation, U.S. Census Bureau, America’s Health Rankings 2014 report.
Utah health insurance resources
Federal marketplace: https://www.healthcare.gov/
Utah Department of Health: http://health.utah.gov/
Utah Insurance Department: https://insurance.utah.gov/
Utah Medicaid: https://medicaid.utah.gov/
Utah CHIP: http://health.utah.gov/chip/
Kaiser Family Foundation: http://kff.org/tag/utah/
