Health Insurance Plans
California Short Term Health Insurance
Short term health insurance plans provide you with health coverage for a limited policy term. They are typically useful for individuals or families in between jobs, waiting for other health coverage to come into force or for students that recently got kicked off their parent’s health plans. Most short term plans offer coverage for up to six months, although some plans may offer coverage for up to twelve months. If you are looking to have coverage for more than six months to a year we recommend enrolling in one of our individual and family plans.
Learn More.
Be aware that most California short term health insurance plans exclude coverage for conditions that have been diagnosed or treated within the previous 3 to 5 years (pre-existing conditions.) If you have current coverage we advise that you stay put until you determine whether your condition is still considered pre-existing. If you happen to lose your job, are fired, or being forced off your parents group coverage, you should extend your coverage under a government regulated option referred to as COBRA. You should be able to stay on that for a maximum of 18 to36 months, then choose one of our HIPAA plans.
Purchasing a California short term health insurance plan can make you ineligible for certain guarantee issue policies such as COBRA or HIPAA. Guarantee issue policies are generally for people with pre-existing health conditions who have trouble getting individual and family health insurance. If you wish to maintain your eligibility for guaranteed issue coverage we advise you NOT to enroll in a short term health policy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Most short term insurance providers have a 30 day minimum on the policy terms. You have to enroll for at least 30 days. You could enroll for 30 days on the single payment option or choose the monthly payment option. If you choose the monthly payment plan and only want 30 days of coverage you will have to cancel after the first month.
Most insurance companies will allow you to enroll in another six month policy term after you have completed the first. Keep in mind that some carriers will only allow you to enroll in a second term if you haven’t filed any claims during the first six months. Many short term carriers only allow you to re-apply once.
With most short term insurance carriers you can tell if you are eligible by answering the medical questions. If you answer yes to any of the medical questions (not including the resident and citizen questions) then you won’t be eligible to apply. You can also complete your application and send it to JC Lewis or give us a call. We’ll let you know within 1 day if you are eligible.
How soon can my coverage start?Coverage under most short term plans can start the day after you submit your application. As long as you get your application into JC Lewis by 12:00PM you can be effective the following day. For coverage to start that soon you need to include a credit card number or EFT (electronic funds transfer) form so we can fax it to the carrier. You may apply online for a faster turn around time however we recommend speaking with one of our JC Lewis agents before doing so. This will allow us to determine if you are eligible so you are not declined by the carrier.
