Health insurance is a staple throughout your adult life. Whether you’re dealing with illness or injury or need preventative care throughout the year, health insurance protects you against the exorbitantly high health care costs without coverage. But if you’re new to shopping for health insurance, it can be confusing the first time. For example, can you get private health insurance whenever you want? Let’s take a look at what you need to know about shopping for health insurance. When you’re ready to take a look at policies and certain that you can sign up for coverage, reach out to us here at Modern Risk Management in Houston, TX to get started!

When Can You Get Private Health Insurance?

If you’re opting to pay for your own health insurance, there’s a period called open enrollment that generally runs from November to January annually. This is the time when everyone shops for health insurance policies and can secure them. Ideally, you’ll want to shop during this period. The only time you’ll be able to get health insurance outside of this period is if you lose it because you’ve been let go from your job. These types of instances (or other cases in which you get married or gain a dependent) are known as qualifying events, and they enable you to purchase private health insurance from the health insurance marketplace outside of the annual enrollment period. There are also other types of temporary health insurance options like COBRA, but these should only be used when you have no other options and can afford temporary health insurance. If you shop during the open enrollment period or when you have a qualifying event, you can get private health insurance.

Ready to Shop Around?

With Modern Risk Management in Houston, TX, we’ll help you find health insurance during the open enrollment period and beyond. Get in touch with us now to begin your health insurance journey!