With the recent passage of the health care bill, health insurance quotes could be impacted in various ways. In particular, the controversial health insurance mandate is one particular provision that is predicted to have the most impact on the entire insurance industry. This stipulation requires every individual to have some type of health care coverage starting in 2014. Failure to do so will result in some type of financial penalty that is calculated based on a percentage of income. These percentages would rise considerably over the following years.

Impact on Health Insurance Quotes

The new health insurance mandate is not meant to affect someone with health insurance coverage but it could cause health insurance quotes to rise for everyone. Insurance providers have time to prepare for this provision but are already preparing for the rush of the uninsured. Part of the health insurance mandate requires insurers to provide coverage for everyone. This means that if a person was previously denied coverage due to a preexisting condition, an insurance provider must now offer some type of coverage, regardless of cost. Experts predict a major rise in health insurance quotes and rates because insurance providers are going to spread that cost around to everyone. The thinking is that people with major medical problems may not be able to afford health insurance and now will be the costliest to insure.

Cost vs. Penalty

The overall intent of the health care bill is good in that people with all types of medical problems will now have coverage of some type. The bad news is that the uninsured group will have to pay, sometimes steep rates. There are stipulations that could exempt someone from having to purchase coverage. If your income is below the specified poverty line or if the cheapest health care policy is over 8% of your annual income. Someone making $20,000 per year can opt out of the health insurance mandate if the lowest cost policy is more than $1,600 annually. This will force some individuals to weigh whether or not to buy health coverage or pay the penalty. In 2014, the penalty is fairly small at $95 or 1% of your annual income. However, in 2016 this rises exponentially to $695 per year or 2.5% of the annual income. Even more substantial is that these penalties apply to each family member, including children. Families that fall just above the poverty line could face a dramatic financial impact.

Because of the health insurance mandate, it is anticipated that health insurance quotes will rise, however it is unknown exactly how much. Individuals or families that do not currently have coverage should begin to prepare for 2014 when these changes take effect.