If you’ve lost your health insurance, Highmark can help.

SEPs get you coverage after you’ve lost health insurance.

You have 60 days from the date you lost your health insurance to enroll in a new health plan. If your employer has given you advanced notice that you will be losing your insurance coverage in the near future, then you can also enroll up to 60 days prior to losing your coverage.

Usually you have to wait for the Open Enrollment Period to sign up for a plan. But losing your job, and therefore your employer’s health insurance, is considered a major life event. Here’s what you’ll need to enroll in a new plan:

• Documentation, like a letter from your employer, that your insurance coverage has ended
• Your unemployment compensation
• The income of every member of your household
• Additional kinds of income like interest, alimony, child support, cash support, or capital gains

Other Qualifying Events

There are other life events that could make you eligible to enroll in an SEP, including:

• Having a baby
• Getting married
• A recent move
• Turning 26

Understanding plans and costs

Once you know if you’re eligible for financial help, you’ll need to decide where you’re going to buy your plan. You have two options:

On the Marketplace

These are Highmark plans that are bought through the federal government marketplace. These plans have financial help that can lower monthly premiums and out-of-pocket costs for people who qualify. 

On the Marketplace

These plans are bought directly through Highmark and do not come with any kind of financial help. Additional plans may be available off-marketplace.

Choose your Metal Level

ACA plans are organized by metal levels.When signing up for a plan, you can choose how you want to split up your costs with your insurer. The quality of care is the same for every level.

• Platinum – The highest monthly premiums but the lowest out of pocket cost.
• Gold – Higher monthly premiums, lower out of pocket cost.
• Silver – Moderate premiums and out of pocket cost. You must select this metal to be eligible for other cost savings.
• Bronze – Lower monthly premiums, higher out of pocket cost.
• Catastrophic – Only for people under 30 or for people undergoing certain hardships. Protects people from the large health bills that come with catastrophes.

Other coverage options

If an Individual & Family plan doesn’t seem like the right fit for you, there are other options that could help.

Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)

CHIP provides comprehensive health insurance coverage for children under the age of 19 – regardless of household income.

Medicaid

Medicaid is a federal and state program that helps cover medical costs for people with limited income and resources.

Consolidation Omnibus Budget ReconciliationAct (COBRA)

COBRA is a health insurance program that allows individuals and families to continue receiving health insurance benefits after the loss of employer-based insurance coverage.