Health Insurance Without SSN?
Everyone knows just how important health insurance is. Without a valid health insurance plan, you are exposed to financial risks from having to pay the significant doctor’s visit and hospital care costs out of your pockets.
Plus, if you don’t have a social security number, then you may also think that you are not eligible to buy a health insurance policy. This is not exactly true.
You can still buy health insurance. These insurance policies usually cover the cost of treating illness, injuries or the cost of a hospital visit.
So, if you do not have a social security number (SSN) and want to buy the best health insurance, then you’ve come to the right place.
In this article, we will take a look at some of the best options to buy health insurance without SSN.
Affordable Care Act (ACA)
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was introduced in March 2010 to help:
- Expand the Medicaid network
- Make health insurance easily available to individuals
- Develop low-cost means of delivering healthcare
There are several provisions provided within the ACA that regulate the sale of insurance policies in the market. Hence, if an insurance provider wants to sell an ACA health insurance plan on the market, they need to ensure that they offer to cover the cost of treating:
- Pregnancy and childbirth services
- Pre-existing conditions
- Pediatric dentistry
These are only the major additional provisions under the ACA but not everyone can qualify for the Affordable Care Act. An individual is considered to be eligible for health insurance under ACA only if the individual:
- Resides in the US
- Is lawfully present
- Is not incarcerated
Every state has created its online health exchanges for eligible individuals to purchase a health insurance plan. To buy a health insurance plan, the regulations dictate that you need to be “lawfully present” which means that you should be:
- US citizen
- US national or
- Lawfully present immigrant (on Visa or similar form) or
- Specified, protected immigrants such as refugees from identified countries
To know specific details of this regulation on immigration status and forms, you can simply visit the https://www.healthcare.gov website.
Please note that undocumented immigrants are ineligible to buy a health insurance policy under the Affordable Care Act.
US Citizens without Social Security Number
There are numerous reasons why many Americans who were born in the US still do not have a social security number. However, does this present an obstacle when buying health insurance?
Health Insurance Without SSN – US Citizens without Social Security Number
Such individuals can contact their state’s health insurance exchange and find out their options. Apart from this, there are several health insurance policies that you can be eligible to buy.
Although these insurance plans may not compare with ACA, you can still get several benefits from these types of health insurance programs.
US Citizen Not “Lawfully Present”
ACA plan eligibility criteria focus on the prospective purchaser of the insurance policy being “lawfully present”.
If you are not deemed as being lawfully present, then you are not eligible to purchase health insurance policies that come under the Affordable Care Act. In such a case, you are considered to be undocumented.
However, this does not mean that you will be unable to purchase any health insurance for yourself and your family. You can buy health insurance from private vendors, just not an ACA health insurance plan.
Besides, if you are an immigrant with a social security number, even then you are deemed not to be lawfully present.
This often happens when you are lawfully present for some time. Then you may have overstayed your visa or work authorization.
In such a case, despite having a social security number, you may be termed as not being lawfully present and hence unable to qualify for health insurance under ACA plans.
Health Insurance without SSN
Now that you know the eligibility criteria for purchasing a health insurance policy under ACA, let’s take a look at some of the alternate health insurance plans for those without social security numbers.
Before taking a look at the options, you need to consider several factors, as these types of health insurance plans often:
- Don’t offer to cover the cost of pregnancy and childbirth
- Don’t offer prescription insurance, but can authorize a prescription discount card which is ideal for buying generic medicine
- Offer limited coverage for any pre-existing health conditions
- Have long waiting periods for treating certain conditions, such as tonsil surgery
- Exclude certain health conditions also
- Have limited preventive care benefits
Additionally, there are around 18 states in the US that don’t allow alternative health insurance. However, some may offer indemnity insurance.
To know the details and criteria for your state of residence, feel free to check out your state’s health insurance exchange.
3 Alternatives for Health Insurance Without SSN
Now let’s check out alternatives for health insurance without SSN:
1 – Indemnity Plan
An indemnity health insurance is your first option if you don’t have SSN. This type of insurance plan pays a fixed dollar benefit for any particular service.
For instance, the indemnity plan will pay around US$ 100 when you go a visit to the doctor for a checkup.
Just like in any other health insurance plan, this policy also has its advantages and limitations.
Using indemnity insurance, you can visit any doctor you like. These insurance plans don’t have any deductibles as indemnity plans are based on first-dollar benefits.
2 – Short-Term Medical Insurance
A short-term medical insurance policy is also another excellent option for those seeking to buy health insurance without SSN.
These types of insurance plans are designed to last for up to 12 months, although some states offer short-term insurance policies for as long as 36 months.
However, short-term health insurance plans mostly exclude pre-existing conditions and any health issues diagnosed and treated after buying short-term health insurance are covered under this plan.
Short-term medical insurance plans offer to cover the cost of the following:
- Doctor’s visits
- Hospital stays
- Ambulance service
- ER visits
- Laboratory work
- Imaging diagnostics
- Cancer screening, etc.
These types of health insurance plans can be bought with 20% lower premiums, as compared to conventional health insurance plans and cost about 50% less when it comes to paying out-of-pocket costs.
3 – Temporary Travel Medical Insurance
If you are on the verge of getting a Visa or have acquired a Visa already, then temporary travel medical insurance is an excellent choice for you. There are different options for every state but the insurance network is extensive enough.
Remember, this is a temporary medical insurance policy. Additionally, carriers explicitly exclude bearing the cost of treating pre-existing conditions or chronic disorders.
Conclusion
If you need to buy health insurance but do not have a social security number for any reason, then you have three major options to choose from – indemnity insurance, short-term medical insurance and temporary travel insurance.
Feel free to visit your state’s health insurance exchange to learn further details about eligibility and the application process.
References
https://latorreinsurance.com/applying-health-insurance-without-ssn/
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