Having adequate health insurance both for you and your family is extremely important, offering you financial security for the times when you require medical care. In order to ensure that you are fully prepared with the best options for you and your family, be sure not miss the open enrollment period to be certain that you and your family can benefit from the best health insurance plans possible.
It might be that unforeseen circumstances result in missing the open enrollment deadline, leaving you without appropriate health insurance. However, this scenario does not have to be cause for massive concern; provided that you meet certain criteria, it is still possible for you to obtain cover. 
What is Open Enrollment?
The Open Enrollment period is the specific time during the year when it is possible to enroll in a health insurance plan through the insurance marketplace. This is also the time during which you can make alterations to an existing policy, such as adding or dropping coverage options, or changing the dependents. Understandably, it is easy not to realise (or to simply forget) that there is a designated time period for these processes, and to presume that they can be completed at any point in the year.
For the year 2017, the open enrollment period began last November 1, 2016, and will end on January 31, 2017. You still have a few days left to enroll, but should you miss this deadline, you can still obtain a health insurance plan provided that you qualify for a special enrollment period. The conditions of eligibility are as follows:
Qualifications for Special Enrollment
You can apply for health insurance coverage under special enrollment circumstances if:
- You are having a baby or adopting a child, and are able to present the child’s birth certificate or adoption papers with court seal included;
- You are getting married or just got married, and can provide a copy of your marriage license;
- You lost your coverage under an employer plan, and your former employer can confirm your loss of coverage. This confirmation comes in the form of a letter stating the name of the employee and the dependants affected, as well as the date and the reason why the loss occurred;
- You lost your coverage as a consequence of a death in the family, divorce or legal separation, or a change in dependent status. These all provide a valid basis upon which to apply for special enrollment, provided that you have legal documents to support your claim.
According to HealthCare.gov, other qualifications for special enrollment include the following:
- If you are moving to a new state, county, or ZIP code. This can include students who are moving to or from school, work related moves, or moves from a shelter or transitional housing;
- If you are moving from a foreign country or US territory;
- If there are changes in your income or household size which would affect your coverage;
- If you are gaining membership in a federally recognized tribe or status as an Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) Corporation shareholder;
- If you just became a US Citizen, rendering you eligible for Marketplace coverage;
- If you are leaving incarceration;
- If you are an AmeriCorps VISTA member starting or ending your service.
If any of the above situations apply to your personal circumstances, then you can still get a health insurance plan after the end of the open enrollment period. However, it is essential to ensure that you have all the necessary documents to submit in support of your application, to prevent any risk of being left without adequate health insurance.
