By skyforbes It's time to enroll in new health insurance since we're a self-employed family and pay for our own insurance through the marketplace. My son has been part of the Maryland CHP health insurance since ACA started, and so we don't have to worry about him becuase he's still eligible. However, my husband and I will need to enroll in a new plan because our current one is with Aetna and they're getting out of the marketplace business.
Apparently, this is the first year that my husband and I are eligible for Medicaid because our adjusted gross income (AGI) that we reported last year falls slightly below the income limit. I always have to guess-timate how much our AGI is each year because he works in home improvement and the amount of business he generates and the expenses he has changes from year to year. But I guess the income limit jumped up to above what I estimated last year and so Maryland Health Connection says I have to sign up for Medicaid. My other option is I can choose a private plan, but I won't receive any financial assistance (which is crazy because then I'd be paying almost 10x more than what I currently pay on my ACA plan with subsidy credits. I do have a third option which is to say my income is higher than whatever the income limit is now and then I can go on a private plan and get subsidy credits.
I am so conflicted over what I should do. I have a number of health issues – some that are more serious like severe hearing loss (cochlear implant has been discussed) and a breast cancer scare that will still require monitoring. While my son is on a Medicaid program (albeit for children) and I know we've had no issues with that, he doesn't have a lot of health issues. He did have one surgery to correct a probem with his eyes, but that's it. I don't know how this would work for someone like me. My husband is healthy as can be, so it doesn't even matter what we choose for him.
I don't know if any of the specialists I currently see take Medicaid or, if they do, what companies they will take. I've been trying to figure that out but it's confusing.