Open Enrollment for Individuals and Families started on November 1st and ended on December 15th. If you missed the deadline and live in Nevada, you can still enroll in health insurance after Open Enrollment. Most states require consumers to have a Qualifying Life Event to enroll in health insurance mid-year. Nevada allows people to enroll in health insurance after open enrollment. However, people who apply for coverage will have a 90 day waiting period.
Individual Health Insurance Plans
To enroll in health insurance after open enrollment, consumers must apply for plans outside of the health insurance exchange. The exchange does not recognize this Nevada State Law with on exchange enrollments. To enroll in on-exchange plans mid-year, HealthCare.gov requires a valid Qualifying Life Event.
The county of your home address will determine what insurance companies are available to you. For example in Washoe County, consumers will have three insurance company options. In Carson City, Douglas County, and Lyon County applicants can choose between two insurance companies. All other counties in Northern Nevada will have one insurance company option.
When you apply for these plans, your coverage will start on the first of the month following a 90 day waiting period. For example, if you apply on February 5th without a Qualifying Life Event, your new plan will start on June 1st.
Insurance companies will not allow you to change plans mid-year if you are already enrolled in their coverage. As a result, the 90 day waiting period rule applies to new applicants only.
Other Health Care Options
If you are a sole proprietor, you can enroll in one of the newly approved Association Health Plans with Hometown Health. To qualify for the plan, you must also be a member of the Better Business Bureau. To learn more about the requirements for this coverage, please click here.
If you own a business, you can start a group health plan. You can also enroll in group coverage at any time of the year. To learn more about the requirements for a group plan, please click here.
