The laws regarding children on a parents’ health insurance policy (known as young adult coverage) can change from time to time. This information is accurate as of 2018, and there have not been any plans announced to make any changes to this information. If you want up-to-date information, then you can search the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for information on how long children can stay on their parents’ health insurance.
What Is The Current Age Limit?
The current age at which a child can be covered by their parents’ health insurance is 26 years old. Coverage stops once the child reaches their 26th birthday. If a child turns 26 in the middle of a plan year, then they can apply for special insurance that will keep them covered until the plan year ends and they can buy their own insurance.
Young Adult Coverage Is Very Comprehensive
When people talk about young adult coverage, they often assume that there are conditions that would disallow coverage for a child under the age of 26. But it is interesting to note that there is almost no situation that disqualifies young adult coverage. Children under 26 years of age can be covered by their parents’ health insurance even if the child is married, the child does not live with their parents, the child is going to college, the child has their own job and their own source of income and the child is able to enroll in the health plan offered by their employer.
Qualifying Health Plans For the Individual Mandate
The individual mandate was a penalty that was applied to people who did not carry qualifying health insurance plans throughout the year. In 2018, President Trump repealed the individual mandate, but the repeal does not take effect until 2019. That means that people who do not have qualifying health insurance through 2018 will still have to pay the penalty.
Young adult coverage is a qualifying health insurance situation that prevents the child from having to pay the individual mandate. If the child gets dropped from their parents’ coverage during the plan year because of their 26th birthday, signing up for the bridge coverage that will take them to the next plan year is also a qualifying health insurance plan.
The health insurance laws regarding young adults on their parents’ health insurance policies are very forgiving. For many families, this sort of leniency can be very helpful when an adult child has problems early in their adult life.
Jim Treebold is a North Carolina based writer. He lives by the mantra of “Learn 1 new thing each day”! Jim loves to write, read, pedal around on his electric bike and dream of big things. Drop him a line if you like his writing, he loves hearing from his readers!