The deadline for enrolling in an insurance plan via MNsure has been extended from Dec. 15 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20. This deadline is for those who want their coverage to start Jan. 1, 2015.
The overall open enrollment period to get insurance via MNsure for 2015 started Nov. 15 and will end Feb. 15. In most cases, those who sign up for insurance after Dec. 20 will have their insurance policies start at the beginning of the next month. For example, if someone enrolls in the first half of February, the insurance policy will begin in March.
According to the MNsure website, calls have hit their peak since MNsure began about a year ago, averaging 1,600 calls per hour in the past week. The average call waiting time is 20 minutes, although some news reports have noted some people have had to wait 90 minutes or more.
MNsure is the Minnesota insurance marketplace made possible via the Affordable Care Act, also known as ObamaCare. The ACA makes it mandatory all United States residents must have some kind of health insurance, otherwise they will be assessed tax penalties.
The tax penalty for those who don’t get insurance for 2015 will be $325 per adult or 2 percent of that individual’s annual income or up to $975 per family. In 2016, that amount will be increased to $695 per adult or 2.5 percent of income and up to $2,085 for a family.
The MNsure website can be found at mnsure.org.
