Health insurance outside Open Enrollment: your options

When Open Enrollment for 2027 is

On HealthCare.gov, Open Enrollment for 2027 coverage runs from November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027. If you enroll by December 15, coverage starts January 1; if you enroll between December 16 and January 15, it starts February 1.

After January 15, according to HealthCare.gov, the only way to enroll in a Marketplace plan is to qualify for a Special Enrollment Period. Some states with their own marketplace have different dates, so check yours.

Special Enrollment Period: which events qualify

A Special Enrollment Period is a window outside Open Enrollment to get into the Marketplace. A change in your life opens it. According to HealthCare.gov, these are the most common:

• Losing your coverage: job-based coverage (including COBRA), an individual plan, Medicaid or CHIP, or a family member’s plan that covered you.
• Changes in your household: getting married, having a baby, adopting or placing a child in foster care, or getting divorced or separated and losing coverage.
• Moving to a new ZIP code or county, or moving to the U.S. from another country or a U.S. territory.
• Status changes: becoming a U.S. citizen or gaining an immigration status that makes you eligible for the first time, or leaving incarceration.
• Other situations: an unexpected hospitalization, a natural disaster, or being a survivor of domestic abuse who wants your own plan.

You may be asked for documents that prove the event, like a letter confirming you lost your coverage. Watch out: according to HealthCare.gov, voluntarily canceling coverage like COBRA before it ends generally does not count as “losing coverage,” and moving only for medical treatment or for a vacation doesn’t qualify either.

How much time you have

You usually have 60 days after the event to enroll. In some cases, like when you know you’re going to lose job-based coverage, you can also enroll up to 60 days before. If you lost Medicaid or CHIP, HealthCare.gov gives you 90 days.

If you’re offered coverage at work, the employer plan also has to give you a Special Enrollment Period of at least 30 days when you have one of these events.

Don’t wait until the last day: if the deadline passes, you’ll have to wait for the next Open Enrollment to get into the Marketplace.

What about the monthly low-income Special Enrollment Period?

Until 2025 there was a Special Enrollment Period that let people earning up to 150% of the federal poverty level enroll in any month. It is no longer available: CMS removed it for 2026 and, in the 2027 Payment Notice final rule, confirmed that Marketplaces still can’t offer it after 2026.

In other words, for 2027 having a low income is no longer enough to enroll late. You need one of the events on the list above.

Medicaid and CHIP: open all year

You can enroll in Medicaid and CHIP any time of year, without waiting for Open Enrollment. CHIP gives low-cost coverage to children (and in some states to pregnant women) in families that earn too much for Medicaid. The rules change from state to state, and children often qualify even when their parents don’t.

You can apply through HealthCare.gov or directly with your state’s Medicaid agency.

Private plans you can get in any month

Outside the Marketplace there are plans with no Open Enrollment. They don’t come with government help to pay the premium and, according to HealthCare.gov, most plans sold outside Open Enrollment don’t count as qualifying health coverage. The two most common types are:

• Short-term plans: the 2024 federal rule limits them to 3 months at first and 4 months in total. In August 2025, the federal government announced it would not prioritize enforcing that rule and that it will write a new one. So, in practice, the length depends on each state’s law and on the insurance company. They generally don’t have to cover pre-existing conditions and can have payment limits. In Florida, the law requires a written notice that they don’t meet federal rules.
• Private limited benefit plans: they cover certain services, for example doctor visits, lab work or hospital days, up to the amounts the plan sets. They are not major medical insurance: they generally don’t meet minimum essential coverage and don’t avoid the penalty in states that charge one.

Before signing any private plan, ask in writing: Does it cover my current health conditions? What does it exclude? What’s the most it pays? How long does it last and can it be renewed? Are my doctors and medications included? If you live in a state with a penalty, also confirm whether it counts to avoid it.

Frequently asked questions