How Job and Income Losses During COVID-19 Can Affect Eligibility for Health Coverage

	Of Interest
As the COVID-19 Economic Crisis Deepens, Data Note Explores How Job and Income Losses Can Affect Families’ Eligibility for Health Coverage More than 16 million workers have already lost their jobs due to the economic turmoil caused by the coronavirus pandemic, and economists expect those numbers to rise in the coming weeks. A new data note examines how job loss and changes in income could affect people’s access to health coverage, whether through work or through the Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces and Medicaid. The data note illustrates scenarios for families in different circumstances to highlight their coverage options, including how state and federal policies may affect their eligibility. Children in unemployed families are likely to be eligible for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program wherever they live, while parents’ income loss due to unemployment may make them newly eligible for Medicaid in expansion states. People who lose job-based coverage also qualify for a Special Enrollment Period in the Affordable Care Act marketplaces in every state and depending on income could receive tax credits and subsidies. People who were uninsured, however, would not qualify to enroll in states relying on the federal HealthCare.gov platform, though most state-run marketplaces have reopened enrollment to all residents. The data note also explains how the federal recovery rebates and enhanced unemployment benefits in the recently passed Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act are treated in determining eligibility for Medicaid and marketplace tax credits and subsidies. For more data, analysis, polling and journalism on the COVID-19 pandemic, visit our special resource page on kff.org. Filling the need for trusted information on national health issues, the Kaiser Family Foundation is a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California.
Contacts: Craig Palosky | (202) 347-5270 | cpalosky@kff.org
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